Business Review Issue 34, November 19 - December 17

INTERVIEW: Diego Brasioli, the Italian Ambassador to Romania, says investors have been shifting towards strategic sectors such as energy and infrastructure, while Italian FDI to the country recently stood at around EUR 12 billion »page 8

ROMANIA’S PREMIER BUSINESS MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER, 2014 / VOLUME 18, NUMBER 34

TOP COMPANIES IN SEE ROMANIAN FIRMS TAKE THE TOP SPOTS IN THE TOP 100 SEE RANKING OF THE LARGEST AND MOST PROFITABLE BUSINESSES IN THE REGION » PAGE 10

Klaus Iohannis managed to overhaul Victor Ponta’s ten percentage point lead from the first round of the elections to become Romania’s first ethnic-German president » page 6

ROMANIA ELECTS NEW PRESIDENT NEWS

CITY

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Lifestyle section

With the fall agenda full of entrepreneurial events, coworking hub type venues are beginning to spring up throughout the country

Browse our selection of what the city has to offer in the coming month: opera premieres, film releases, the coziest tea houses and cultural events

» page 32

» page 35

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

NEWS 3

NEWS in brief BANKING Garanti Bank and Garanti Mortgage finalize merger Garanti Bank and Garanti Mortgage (Domenia Credit IFN SA) have completed the procedures for the merger of the two companies in Romania, after meeting all legal requirements, officials announced. This is the first merger on the local market between a bank and a nonbanking financial institution. The bank was assisted in the merger by KPMG and NTMO, the law firm affiliated with KPMG in Romania, both working as financial and legal advisors for Garanti Bank. In 2013, Garanti Mortgage registered net revenues of EUR 3.1 million and a profit of EUR 600,000. Garanti Mortgage’s total loan portfolio, at the date of the merger, amounted to EUR 114 million.

UniCredit Tiriac Bank reports EUR 31.8 mln net consolidated profit for first nine months UniCredit Tiriac Bank reported a new consolidated profit of EUR 31.8 million (RON 141.6 million) for the first nine months of 2014. Consolidated operational revenues stood at EUR 261 million (RON 1.16 billion), similar to the ninemonth results of 2013. Operational expenses reached EUR 131.6 million (RON 585.3 million), while operational profit stood at EUR 129.4 million (RON 575 million). Credit provisions reached EUR 84.5 million (RON 376.1 million) in the first nine months of the year. During the period, UniCredit Leasing granted financing for car and equipment acquisitions worth EUR 208 million (RON 925 million), up approximately 20 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. The total assets of the company grew to EUR 650 million (RON 2.87 billion) at the end of September 2014.

CONSTRUCTION Road authority to pay EUR 26 mln this year to finish Transylvania highway Romania’s roads authority, the CNADNR, is seeking a constructor to finish a 52kilometer section of the Transylvania highway, a portion that was 97 percent completed by US builder Bechtel, and

expects to pay up to RON 114.4 million (EUR25.9 million), VAT included. The project to finish section 2B Campia Turzii–Gilau of the highway connecting Brasov-Targu Mures-Cluj-Oradea and Bors includes design activities, legal work and repairing the faults from the previous construction period. The contract is valued at RON 76.9 million, with another RON 15.3 million added for similar works and activities. Financed from the public budget, it will run for 42 months.

Meric Capital completes EUR 2.5 mln residential project Meric Capital, an investment vehicle acting for Israel’s Plotkin Project, finished its first real estate project in Romania: a 16-apartment building in downtown Bucharest, after a EUR 2.5 million investment. The building, located on Dogarilor street, called Central Garden residents, is the result of a EUR 2.5 million investment and has four floors. The price of a three-room apartment was EUR 125,000 + VAT during the construction phase and now stands at EUR 132,000 + VAT. The firm has other real estate in Bucharest, including plots in Obor, Stefan cel mare and Muncii bought between 2007 and 2008 where it intends to build over 100 apartments in the next few years. The new two projects will be initiated in 2015 and are worth EUR 4.7 million each. The developer also owns a 32,000 sqm plot in Corbeanca.

ENERGY OMV Petrom puts up EUR 30 mln to redevelop Tazlau oil field OMV Petrom announced it would start the redevelopment project of the Tazlau oil field, located in north-eastern Romania, in Bacau County. The project entails investments of around EUR 30 million over 2014-2015.

Tazlau is a mature oil field, producing for more than 60 years, with a daily production of below 1 percent of OMV Petrom’s total oil production in Romania.

The Tazlau redevelopment project consists of 20 workover operations, the construction of water treatment facilities and a new water distribution network.

This project is expected to unlock additional oil reserves of 3.2 million bbl.

Contents 6 8 10 14 15 16 18 19 20 23 24 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 34 36 38 39 40 42 43 44 45

Romanian presidency gets German wings Italian investors targeting strategic local sectors Local names top ranking of largest firms in CEE Banks tell policymakers to look at EU directive on foreign currency loan conversion Millennials make up bulk of Telus International headcount Romanian 4G map is getting crowded Compelling evolution Going local on a changing ad scene Higher expectations for high-end residential market Hilton Athenee Palace Bucharest gets ready for EUR 8 million facelift Romania should be on foreign investment map Automotive industry facing overcrowding in western Romania Local energy sector’s investment future at crossroads Agriculture remains attractive despite unresolved issues and new challenges Romania pints hopes on new public procurement regulations to develop local infrastructure Local real estate to cash in on region’s geopolitical turmoil IT human resources top agenda of next local IT clusters’ meeting Sharing is caring in coworking hubs Who’s news OvidiuRo raises EUR 267,000 to support 2,200 children Commitment as a way of living Re-leaf: it’s tea time New La Traviata marks new beginning for Bucharest Opera Cluj laughing now Romanian realities writ large on big screen Odeon Theater launches English subtitling service What’s next

ISSN No. 1453 - 729X FOUNDING EDITOR Bill Avery PUBLISHER Anca Ionita EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Simona Fodor JOURNALISTS Otilia Haraga (senior journalist), Simona Bazavan, Oana Vasiliu COPY EDITOR Debbie Stowe PHOTO EDITOR Mihai Constantineanu LAYOUT Beatrice Gheorghiu ART DIRECTOR Alexandru Oriean EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR George Moise SALES & EVENTS DIRECTOR Oana Molodoi

SALES & EVENTS Sales managers: Ana-Maria Nedelcu, Oana Albu, Raluca Comanescu MARKETING Ana-Maria Stanca, Ana Maria Andrei, Iulia Mizgan PRODUCTION Dan Mitroi DISTRIBUTION Eugen Musat PUBLISHER Bloc Notes Media ADDRESS No. 10 Italiana St., 2nd floor, ap. 3 Bucharest, Romania LANDLINE Editorial: 031.040.09.32 Office: 031.040.09.31 EMAILS editorial@business-review.ro sales@business-review.ro events@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

4 NEWS

NEWSin brief Hidroelectrica posts RON 124 million profit in October State-owned hydroelectricity producer Hidroelectrica reported a RON 124 million profit for October. For the first ten months of the year the company registered a profit of RON 943 million, up 23.64 percent compared to the same period of 2013.

The firm says the growth is due to higher energy sales and the cost controls imposed by the legal administrator EuroInsol through its reorganization plan.

In the first ten months of this year, Hidroelectrica produced and delivered 15,5 TWh. For the whole of 2014 it estimates a production of minimum 17.5 TWh. The company’s turnover at the end of October reached RON 2.7 billion, up 11.24 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.

Until the end of the year the firm says it estimates a turnover of RON 3.2 billion.

HEALTHCARE MedLife launches new hyper-clinic in Constanta MedLife opened a new hyper-clinic in Constanta, following a EUR 2 million investment. The project was developed with financing granted by Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR). The new unit, which stands on a 1,300 sqm surface, offers medical services from 22 specialties and includes an imaging department with an RMN 3T machine. The clinic also includes an excellence center in esthetic dermatology. After opening facilities in Galati, Iasi and Constanta this year, the company says it plans to open at least four new clinics in other large cities across the country. MedLife had 1.3 million patients at the end of June.

HOTELS EUR 9 mln Mercure hotel opens in Bucharest A four-star Mercure hotel in Bucharest opened following a EUR 9 million investment, said representatives of the Dogariu family, which owns the hotel.

The family also owns a dental clinic in Bucharest – Dentotal Clinic – and has invested in the import and distribution of dental equipment. Last year this generated EUR 10.6 million and a similar level is expected for 2014, according to Anghel Dogariu. The owners’ only other real estate investment is a five-storey office building where the

Dentotal group of companies are headquartered. Should the Mercure hotel post positive results, the Dogariu family is considering similar investments.

The 114-room Mercure hotel is located on George Enescu Street in downtown Bucharest close to the Romanian Athenaeum. The owners expect the hotel to generate an annual turnover of about EUR 600,000 to EUR 700,000.

Out of the entire sum invested, EUR 6 million is a credit granted by Garanti Bank.

Bucharest sets its sights on becoming a winter destination Hotel owners are looking to turn Bucharest into a winter destination, according to the Romanian Tourism Owners Federation (FPTR) quoted by Mediafax. “The target is to reach, within five years, 50,000 tourists in December, coming especially for these programs,” said Dragos Raducan, vice-president of the Romanian Tourism Owners Federation. Bucharest is the Romanian city attracting most visitors: 1.32 million last year, out of whom 600,000 were foreigners. Out of these, more than half are businesspeople.

INDUSTRY Alro reports RON 1.44 billion turnover at end of September Aluminum producer Alro reported a turnover of RON 1.44 billion for the first nine months of 2014, down from the RON 1.50 million registered over the same period of 2013. The company says the results come against a climate of lower demand and an oversupplied market. Its volume sales of aluminum products increased by 1 percent, on the same period of 2013, sales of processed aluminum were up by 7 percent, while sales of primary aluminum fell by approximately 3 percent, with more slabs being used internally in order to support the increase of value added production.

billion while intragroup loans stood at EUR 171 million. The net flux of foreign direct investment reached EUR 2.7 billion in 2013. Around 61.4 percent of the investment went to the Bucharest-Ilfov area, while the northwest of the country managed to attract only 4.5 percent.

IT Local IT industry ‘will need 300,000 specialists by 2020’ With 120,000 specialists working in IT, Romania needs to fuel its fast development in this field by training another 180,000, according to Andrei Pitis, president of the Employers’ Association of the Software and Services Industry (ANIS). By 2020, the industry will need at least 300,000 people. The challenge for universities is to support the fast growth of school places in the field of computers and IT. Companies’ involvement in the educational process is essential, added the ANIS president. Universities are calling on the private sector to create a fund to support talented young people of modest means, who, despite winning admission to the faculty, are unable to afford the costs and therefore do not take up their places.

LEGAL Coface: Local insolvencies down 17 percent in Q3

MONTH AHEAD November 21 - 28 Black Friday

Retailers have split the Black Friday discount event into two separate weekends for Romanian shoppers.

The first half will take place in the third weekend of the month, between 21 and 23 November. eMag has announced that it will offer discounts on November 21. Ikea is preparing special promo-offers for the November 28 – December 1 weekend. Other retailers, such as Domo, will be giving customers the chance to take advantage of special discounts throughout the entire week between November 21 and 28.

November 27 GPec Summit International conversion optimization specialists Andre Morys and John Ekman will speak for the first time in Romania at this e-commerce event.

Violeta Luca, VP & executive director of eMAG, will share with GPeC Summit’s audience eMAG’s Black Friday 2014 results and the market trends for 2015. A total of 100 online shops are participating in the GPeC Online Shops Competition.

Tickets for the event are available on the www.gpec.ro/en/ website.

November 29 Christmas lights Bucharest will light up with Christmas spirit earlier this year, after City Hall announced in October that the light installations adorning the city’s major boulevards and squares will be switched on on November 29. The traditional Bucharest Christmas Market in Universitatii Square will also start on that date and last a whole month, until December 28.

1 Two IT giants preparing their Ro-

INVESTMENT

Some 15,575 new insolvencies were registered in Romania during the first nine months of this year, down 17 percent from 18,735 in the same period of 2013, analysis by credit risk management firm Coface found. The finding is based on data provided by the National Trade Registry. The sectors that reported highest number of insolvencies per 1,000 active companies are: construction, textiles, HORECA, mining and quarrying and transport.

Bucharest remains the only region where insolvencies increased in the first nine months of the year, up by 24 percent, while the rest of the regions registered a decrease.

FDI to Romania totals EUR 1.5 billion at the end of September

ONLINE

4 Advisory firm: Iohannis could

Catalyst Romania invests in Elefant.ro

5 Comparing Iohannis and Ponta’s

Direct foreign investment to Romania totaled EUR 1.5 billion at the end of September, according to data from the Central Bank (BNR). Out of the total FDI, equity stakes, including reinvested earnings, amounted to EUR 1.3

Investment fund Catalyst Romania, administered by 3TS Capital, bought a little over 10 percent of

MOST READ www.business-review.eu manian entry; could create 4,500 jobs

2 Klaus Iohannis is the most popular European politician on Facebook

3 Klaus Iohannis, a close second

behind Victor Ponta in Romania presidency first round vote spur economic liberalization in Romania agendas on business and economy

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014 Universal Online Promotion, the company that owns online retailer www.elefant.ro, said Mihai Sfintescu, partner at 3TS Capital Partners.

“Our decision to invest is based on these factors: on the company’s general evolution and the management team’s ability to understand and envision online commerce. Following this capital increase, we entered the shareholder structure with a participation of 10 percent,” said Sfintescu.

Details on the value of the investment were not released, but Sfintescu mentioned it was possible that another round of financing could follow by the end of next year, at which point Catalyst Romania’s share could increase.

The shareholder structure for Universal Online Promotion will also change, with 5 percent of shares being awarded to the management team from now on. Ion Sturza, former PM of Moldova and minority shareholder, added that elefant.ro will use the financing to develop its marketing strategy, in order to attract more clients.

eMag estimates EUR 33.8 mln in Black Friday sales

NEWS 5 Evolution, Gorenje, Fata Group and City Grill, which runs a restaurant on the ground floor.

Cemacon reports 37 percent increase in nine-month turnover Ceramic block producer Cemacon reported a 37 percent increase for the first nine months of the year, compared to the same period of 2013.

The company posted a net result of RON 3.76 million for the period and a gross turnover of over RON 51 million.

This year, its Recea plant worked at maximum capacity, thus managing to maximize the investments made in the first half of the year. These went into an increase in productivity, cost cutting and improving the quality of products. After the Recea plant reached its maximum production capacity, the company decided to expand its production capacity and is currently conducting modernization works on the production line in its Zalau plant.

EUR 9 mln residential project to be built near Bucharest

eMag, the online store that launched Black Friday in Romania, will sell a range of 450,000 products during this year’s event, on November 21, at discounts of nearly EUR 17 million (RON 75 million). The range of products selling at reduced rates includes IT products, mobile phones, cameras, home appliances, personal care, cosmetics, books, toys, furniture, cars, plus home & garden. eMag estimates total sales of EUR 33.8 million (RON 150 million) during Black Friday. Discounts will reach as much as 75 percent. To prepare for the event, eMag invested EUR 1.1 million (RON 5 million) in servers and RON 2 million in the online platform.

Kape Premium Imobiliare – a residential developer active in France and Italy – is investing approximately EUR 9 million in building 100 villas in Frumusani, south-east of Bucharest, according to Premier Estate, the project’s agent. Residence du Lac is being developed on 12 ha of land some 28 km from the capital’s downtown. The project will be built in four phases and should be completed in 2017. The first 23 villas as well as two pools, playground areas and sports areas will be completed by September next year.

Prospective buyers can choose from three types of villas with carpet areas of between 80 sqm and 120 sqm. The villas are located on plots of land of between 700 sqm and 1,200 sqm. Vitalis Consulting is responsible for the project management.

PROPERTY

Impact invests EUR 14 mln in expanding Greenfield by 252 apartments

Uniqa Group wants to fully lease Floreasca Tower by the end of 2015 Uniqa Real Estate Management, a subsidiary of Austrian insurer Uniqa Group and the manager of the company’s real estate portfolio, completed the refurbishment of Floreasca Tower, the 7,600 sqm office building it owns in northern Bucharest, the company announced. It is now planning to have approximately half of the building leased by the first quarter of next year. The class B+ building was delivered in 2005 and was previously known as Oracle Tower, as the IT giant was its main tenant until March. Oracle canceled its lease contract in spring, two years ahead of its expiration, and relocated to nearby Floreasca Park. The building now has five tenants – Romenergo, Raiffeisen

Romanian company Impact Developer & Contractor will deliver this December three apartment blocks from the Greenfield housing project in Baneasa and another six will be completed in February, according to Mediafax newswire. Construction works started five months ago.

The nine apartment blocks comprise 252 apartments and will require a total investment of EUR 14 million. The flats are one-, two- and three-bedroom units with surfaces of between 65 sqm and 120 sqm, which the developer estimates will be sold out by my mid-2015.

Next year Impact also plans to begin work on another nine apartment blocks that are part of the same project. The entire Greenfield project is being built on a 60 ha plot of land in Baneasa, near Bucharest.

RETAIL H&M to launch local online store in 2015 Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) Tuesday said it would launch an online store in Romania in 2015. The retailer currently operates 37 stores nationwide. Also next year, H&M plans to launch online platforms in Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Portugal and Slovakia. H&M Romania saw sales go up by 34 percent in the first quarter of the current fiscal year (December 2013 – May 2014) to reach EUR 61 million, according to Mediafax. In RON, H&M’s sales were up 30 percent, including VAT. During this time, the Swedish retailer opened seven new stores and reached a network of 35 units on the local market, according to company officials.

TELECOM Vodafone’s customer base decreases slightly, ARPU climbs Vodafone Romania had 8,507,439 customers, out of whom 7,914,267 were mobile customers, representing a decrease of 60,313 in the number of total subscribers on the previous quarter,

according to the key performance indicators posted by the company for the quarter ended on September 30.

Postpaid customers represented 42.2 percent, and prepaid customers 57.8 percent of the total mobile base. The postpaid base increased by 0.6 percentage points quarter to quarter, and by 1.9 percentage points as compared to the same period of last year. Vodafone Romania’s Mobile ARPU reached EUR 6.2 over the last three months, corresponding to a 4.7 percent increase, compared to the previous quarter.

Deutsche Telekom sets up one of largest investment funds in Europe Deutsche Telekom (DT) is to considerably expand the scope and volume of its investments in venture capital and technological innovation. The Supervisory Board of Deutsche Telekom AG has approved the setting up of a specialist team of investment managers in a newly formed company called Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners (DTCP), according to company officials. DTCP will launch in early 2015.

DT is planning for DTCP to have a fund volume of EUR 500 million for a five-year period on top of the existing investments in T-Venture. This doubles the group’s commitment to investments in ventures and innovation, said officials.

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

6 ELECTIONS

Romanian presidency gets German wings The fifth president of Romania was elected at the end of November. It marked the conclusion of two weeks bookended by voting rounds that saw street protests in response to the way the ballot was organized for Romanians abroad, prompting the Foreign Affairs minister to step down. Winner Klaus Iohannis managed to overturn the 10 percentage point lead Victor Ponta had on him after the first round to become Romania’s first ethnic-German, non-Orthodox president.

CV Klaus Iohannis

∫ Klaus Iohannis won 54.40 percent of the vote in the second round of the presidential elections, while Victor Ponta received the support of 45.49 percent of voters, according to the official results after 99.07 percent of the voting centers had announced their counts.

“The campaign is over and we need to start working,” said Iohannis in his victory speech. “Romanians have given the signal of a profound change in the country. The signal is very powerful to me and to the Romanian political class.”

Many pundits commented that his victory came against the backdrop of deep dissatisfaction with the current government. The two weeks preceding the second round were marked by protests against the way the first voting round was organized for Romanians abroad, many of whom waited hours to cast their ballot only to be turned away.

Foreign Affairs minister Titus Corlatean resigned over the issue but the chaotic scenes were repeated in the second round, when the Romanian diaspora showed up in almost double the numbers to cast their ballots. After the second round, the replacement Foreign Affairs minister Teodor Melescanu resigned over the same issue, after only eight days in office.

Protests to show solidarity with Romanians abroad turned, on the night of the second electoral round, into support marches for Iohannis, who has recently become the most popular Romanian politician on Facebook, amassing more than 1 million likes on the social network.

Among the first to congratulate Iohannis on his win was German president Joachim Gauck. He assured him that Germany would continue to support Romania in its reforms, especially in consolidating the democratic state institutions, Mediafax reported. “You are taking over your (presidential) mandate at times marked by great challenges for Europe and for your country. Rest assured that Germany will continue to support Romania, in the future also, in the important reforms that are about to be made on its way to improving the democratic state,” ran the official statement by the German presidency.

German chancellor Angela Merkel also congratulated Iohannis, saying that together they would be able to deepen existing bilateral relations. “We will support Romania with advice and acts on its way to reforms that are important for your country and for the Eu-

Soon-to-be first lady Carmen Iohannis with president-elect Klaus Iohannis

ropean Union and we will remain a reliable partner. I am convinced that together we can deepen our bilateral relations,” said Angela Merkel, who also wished the newly elected president good luck.

PM Ponta headed off for a short vacation after his defeat. “Of course I’m sad, I’m very sorry for those who supported me, for those who believed in me. Tonight, in the coming days, I will spend some time with my family, who are suffering more than I am, but tomorrow we have a government meeting and starting next week we will be performing our duty,” he said.

According to sources quoted by Mediafax, the Liberal Party is not looking to enter a governing alliance this year, figuring that the government needs to assume responsibility for the budget and negotiate with the IMF.

A Romania of things done properly The platform Iohannis ran on had several major themes: education as a performance resource for Romania; a competitive and prosperous liberal economy; a developed agricultural sector and the development of Romania’s urban areas; infrastructure development; de-centralization as one of the key factors in Romania’s modernization; investments in the healthcare sec-

tor; rethinking the relationship between the state and its citizens; outlining a plan for Romania’s pensions system; the reform of the public and political institutions; and tackling the country’s demographic challenges.

His economic policies include guaranteeing the right to property, given that it is vital to freedom and a free market, competitive industry and modern agriculture, to provide stable and well paid jobs. During the campaign, he also spoke of lowering VAT to 19 percent.

First lady ponders relocating to Bucharest Carmen Iohannis, soon to become first lady of Romania, is an English teacher in Sibiu. After hearing the news of her husband’s win, she said she hoped to be able to continue working well. “I’m trying to do my job the best I can and I hope, as first lady, to do the same,” said Carmen Iohannis , adding that she hoped to be able to juggle priorities. The Monday after the elections, her students greeted her in class singing, “We are the Champions.” Euronews, which had already featured Romania’s new first lady, quoted her as telling students, “This victory is yet more proof that, in the end, decency, modesty and good intentions always win.” She told journalists

she had not yet made up her mind about transferring to Bucharest.

A physics teacher by training, Klaus Iohannis became mayor of Sibiu 14 years ago, and has won all the elections he has run in.

He was born on June 13, 1959, in Sibiu and is married to Carmen. In 1983 he graduated from the Physics Faculty of the Babes-Bolyai University in ClujNapoca and for the next five years worked as a teacher at various schools and high schools in Sibiu. From 1989 to 1997 he was a physics teacher at the Brukenthal National College in Sibiu, which he had also attended as a pupil. From 1997 to 1999 he was deputy general education inspector, and from 1999 to 2000 a general inspector.

He had been a member of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania (FDGR) since its establishment in 1990 and from 2001-2013 served as president of the organization. He resigned from the post in February 2013 when he joined the National Liberal Party (PNL).

He entered politics in 2000, when the FDGR decided to put forward its own candidate for City Hall, in order to receive more mandates in the local council, according to a Mediafax report.

In the 2000 Sibiu City Hall elections he beat social democrat Ioan Cindrea with 69.18 percent of the votes. He won a second mayoral mandate with 88.7 percent of votes, and a third, in 2008, with 83.2 percent. In June 2012 he was returned to office with 77.9 percent of votes.

In 2009 and again in 2013, the National Integrity Agency ANI started investigations into whether the position of Sibiu mayor was incompatible with other roles held by Iohannis.

He successfully challenged the first investigation in court, while a decision on the second is pending on November 25.

According to his most recent statements, Iohannis does not own any land, but he and his wife have bought three apartments and three houses in Sibiu.

He also declared he had three current accounts, with EUR 13,500, USD 9,000 and RON 91,000 in them.

He declared revenues from his mayoral position of RON 43,802 in 2013, while his wife would have made RON 26,247 the same year.

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

ELECTIONS 7

Foreign press showers winning “underdog” Iohannis with attention Many of the world’s biggest press agencies and media companies picked up and ran with the news of Klaus Iohannis winning Romania’s presidential election, stressing the surprising turn of events, as well as the fact that the incumbent PM, Victor Ponta, had antagonized the Romanian diaspora in an act of quasi-self-sabotage. ∫ DIANA PETRESCU “Surprising”, “unexpected”, “historical development” and “shocking” are just some of the terms used by international news outlets to describe the result of Romania’s vote earlier this month.

“In a surprising turnaround, Prime Minister Victor Ponta conceded Romania’s presidential runoff election late Sunday night to the center-right candidate, Klaus Iohannis, the mayor of the Transylvanian city of Sibiu”, wrote American publication New York Times.

The BBC adhered to the same line of thinking that Iohannis had “won a surprise victory” after a “tight race”.

Deutsche Welle called the result a “surprise of historic proportions”.

Reuters went as far as to say that Victor Ponta had suffered a “shock defeat”. The French press agency also noted that Ponta’s victory could have brought stability to one of the European Union’s poorest states, but the liberal candidate’s victory “could trigger renewed political tensions”.

AFP painted Iohannis as a completely “atypical candidate”, an ethnic German of Protestant religion in a predominantly Orthodox country.

“Denigrated by his adversaries on account of his German origins, Klaus Iohannis, who generated a surprise upset after winning the presidential race in Romania, managed to convince the voters by pleading for a normal Romania, free of corruption”, France Press noted in an article headlined, “Klaus Iohannis, the atypical trajectory of the ‘Transylvanian German’ who became president”.

Diaspora packs heavy punch Most international press institutions were quick to point out that the inconvenience experienced by Romanian expats during the first round vote on November 2 were at least part of the reason why public opinion turned decisively against Ponta. Only 160,000 Romanians out of the couple of million living abroad were able to vote on November 2, reported Agence France-Presse.

"Victor Ponta has made a few major strategic mistakes. A major mistake was ostracizing the diaspora", said Sergiu Miscoiu, an analyst with the CESPRI political think tank,

All the president-elect’s men: Iohannis greets supporters on the campaign trail

regime’s method of preventing anquoted by The Telegraph.

Reuters commented out that al- other upset.

The Financial Times looked bethough Ponta had enjoyed a ten-percentage point lead in popularity yond the events of the last couple of according to surveys taken before the weeks, and argued that the result was election, “anger at voting problems “a manifestation of years of anger with overseas appeared to galvanize sup- low living standards and persistent corruption in the EU’s second-poorest port for the 55-year-old Iohannis”.

The same institution reported that country, more than seven years after protests quickly followed after the it joined the EU”. first round vote, and also reminded its readers that “overseas voters played a What does the future hold? key role” in swinging the results in After getting over the “shock” of IoRomania’s last presidential elections hannis’s victory and debating what in 2009. Although socialist candidate could have been the determining facMircea Geoana was announced as tors, the international media reported winner five years ago based on the that the new president would have votes by citizens living in Romania, his work cut out for him, given that by morning, when votes from over- even though he had defeated Ponta in seas were tallied, Traian Basescu the presidential election, the socialist came out on top. party leader would represent fierce In this context, the long queues opposition in the future. and bureaucratic hurdles endured by “Iohannis will face a fight to get his expat Romanians when trying to vote own agenda across,” said Otilia Dhand, in the first round on November 2, vice-president of Teneo Intelligence, were perceived by the public as the quoted by the Financial Times.

The same publication remarked that Iohannis’s role as president prevents him from having to much influence on economic policies. However, his control over political nominations will allow him to maneuver around the opposition’s influence and power.

Ponta’s party, the Social Democrats, has a working majority in Parliament, and he remains prime minister, so he and Iohannis will have to try to find a way to work together, probably until the next parliamentary elections in 2016, wrote the New York Times.

Another possible point of contention between the liberals and the socialists will be Romania’s budget for 2015, which has yet to be passed. Incumbent prime minister Ponta will have to balance spending promises such as pension hikes made during the election campaign with an EU commitment to fiscal discipline. diana.petrescu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

8 INTERVIEW

Italian investors targeting strategic local sectors There are around 40,000 companies with Italian capital in Romania, and in the past few years investors have been moving towards strategic sectors in the country such as energy and infrastructure, says Diego Brasioli, the Italian Ambassador to Bucharest. He adds that Italian foreign direct investments to Romania have edged close to EUR 3 billion, while bilateral trade between the two counties has been hovering at around EUR 12 billion in recent years.

âˆŤ OVIDIU POSIRCA How would you describe the economic and political relations between Italy and Romania at the moment?

There is only one word that we can use and that is: excellent. Italy and Romania are very close partners.

Since 2008 we have shared a strategic partnership, which was signed by the governments at that time, and there have constantly been very high-level meetings, exchanges of visits and views with political leaders, and there is enormous interest in investment and economic activities in

both countries. The relations are very good and the mission of the Italian Embassy is to improve even further, if possible, this excellent status.

How many companies with Italian capital are active in Romania and in what sectors?

We have almost 40,000 Italian companies registered in Romania. Our estimate is that half of them are active.

Italian firms represent one fifth of the total foreign companies active in Romania. The number is increasing every year. In the first six months of this year we had 2,000 new

Italian businesses so they keep on coming.

At the same time commercial exchanges between the two countries have remained at around EUR 12 billion in the last few years.

Italian companies are present in all the traditional sectors and in the last few years we have seen growing interest in strategic areas such as agro-industry, energy and infrastructure. Of course, banking and manufacturing are the traditional sectors where Italian companies invest.

Total Italian direct investments in Romania amount to close to EUR 3 billion.

What are the legal and ďŹ scal challenges for Italian investors in Romania?

The message that we get from our investors is the need for a stable situation, especially when it comes to legislation, so the predictability of the investment is very important. We can give an example from the energy sector – many foreign companies, including a large number of Italian firms, were interested in renewable energy.

Last year there were some changes to the legislation and those changes created some disconcert among our foreign investors because the rules had somehow changed. So the first need

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

CV Diego Brasioli February 2013 -present Italian Ambassador to Romania 2010-2012 president of the Inter-ministerial Committee for Human Rights 2007-2010 head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs bureau handling the G8 agenda, antiterrorism and the fight against organized crime Graduate of La Sapienza University for foreign investments is system predictability. In general terms, Italian enterprises are happy to work in Romania and we can see that also from the growing number of firms.

Some of them are facing difficulties, particularly delays in payments and arrears, especially when it comes to contracts awarded in the public sector. Some of them also find bureaucracy an issue so they are calling for a better business climate, especially when it comes to making bureaucracy friendlier for foreign companies.

What are Italy’s priorities while it holds the rotating presidency of the EU? Italy is running the presidency of the EU at a critical moment for the economic sector and we need to face the crisis. This is severe in EU states, and in particular Italy, which has been left exposed with a high level of public debt, high unemployment and the need to restart investments and reboot the economy.

When we talk about the program of the presidency in Romania, we are working with the Romanian government to highlight the progress that has been made by Romania in different sectors in the last two years. That is why, aside from the usual activities of the presidency (regular meetings between EU ambassadors and politicians for instance), we decided to hold some public events involving the private sector too on some important issues.

We started our presidency on July 8 with a conference on the use of EU funds, which is a critical issue for Romania, and we are happy to see that especially after the creation of the special Ministry for EU funds, the level of use of this instrument has grown significantly. Of course, there is still a lot of work to be done but the trend is a positive one.

We are going to organize a similar event with the Ministry of Agriculture, because agriculture is a big asset and a big opportunity, especially for foreign investors in Romania.

INTERVIEW 9 Romania is a country with huge potential in this field too, and many more initiatives will follow.

What is Italy’s position on Romania’s ongoing efforts to join the Schengen area?

Italy fully supports Romania’s accession to the Schengen space. We believe that since 2011 Romania has fulfilled all the technical requirements for joining Schengen, so in our opinion the country should already be part of it. Of course, you need consensus among the member states to secure this solution and our position is that we reject any formal link between the Mechanism of Cooperation and Verification (MCV) and Schengen – those are two separate issues.

On the MCV, we are happy that Romania is cooperating with the EU authorities to comply with the requirements but we believe that the two issues should be kept separate.

We hope that a positive solution will be found soon but as I said before there is the need for consensus decision. Any time it has the opportunity, Italy promotes the idea that Romania should have full access to Schengen.

This is a requirement of not only more than 1 million Romanians living in Italy but also of our investors, because there are so many Italian businesspeople coming to Romania and the limitation of Schengen is a limitation for them as well. For two countries that are so close to each other, this is a serious limitation. We hope (e.n. Romania’s accession into Schengen) will happen as soon as possible.

What is your take on the current Ukrainian crisis and on the geopolitical context of the Eastern Partnership with the EU? The crisis in Ukraine has come at a critical moment in Europe and has made it clear that the eastern part of the EU is a very complex geopolitical area where there are so many intertwined interests – the Russian Federation, the EU, but also the countries that are involved in the Eastern Partnership (Ukraine, Moldova as well as Georgia and Azerbaijan).

We believe that each of those countries should open their markets and grow in a space of democracy and freedom. We don’t consider the Eastern Partnership an alternative to dialogue with Moscow; and the two processes should go side by side.

It is obvious that the crisis in Ukraine has shown some weaknesses in European policies and this is one of the most important challenges for the new European Commission. We are confident the newly appointed High Representative of Foreign Policy, the current Italian minister for foreign affairs Federica Mogherini, will devote a lot of attention and her great expertise in the area to this issue. oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

10 TOP COMPANIES IN SEE

Local names top ranking of largest firms in SEE Romanian firms occupy the top spots in a ranking of the biggest companies in South-East Europe in 2013, put together by SeeNews. Since the previous year’s list, two more Romanian players have entered the chart, taking the total to 53 compared to 51 in 2012. ∫ Local firms are prevalent at the top of the ranking, with five out of the ten largest companies in SEE being Romania-based.

TOP 100 SEE is an annual ranking of the biggest companies in SouthEast Europe, put together by Sofiabased news agency SeeNews.

Businesses are ranked by their total revenue for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2013.

Aside from listing the largest nonfinancial companies by total revenue in 2013, SeeNews TOP 100 SEE ranks the biggest banks and insurers, and includes interviews with the charttoppers and key market players. It also features sub-rankings of the most profitable companies, biggest lossmakers, the most successful industries and the companies with the highest revenue per capita.

Overall in SEE, oil and gas companies continue to place at the top of the ranking and generate most of the total revenues, although their combined revenues and profit fell, the report notes.

This year’s list features 29 firms in the energy industry, up one on 2013, while wholesalers and retailers number 17, three more than the previous year. Only seven telcos made the ranking this year, down from previous editions.

Local energy firms among biggest companies in SEE According to the analysis by TOP 100 SEE, Romania is bucking the trend in the region, with its economy expanding by 3.5 percent in 2013. The country’s performance comes against a background of low foreign investment rates across the region, coupled with low external demand and household consumption.

OMV Petrom topped the chart for the seventh year in a row, despite having posted a drop in revenues of nearly 3 percent to reach EUR 4.27 billion in 2013. The company, which saw its net profit rise to EUR 1.08 billion, is also singled out in the rankings as the most profitable in SEE, with a 25.27 percent return on revenue. In an interview with TOP 100 SEE, Mariana Gheorghe, CEO of OMV Petrom, attributed the company’s performance

to “massive investments performed in the past nine years – totaling EUR 10 billion – across all business divisions and departments.” However, the oil giant felt the impact of the “structural changes on global gas and energy markets, the volatility of the fiscal and regulatory environment in Romania and shrunken demand,” the report notes.

In second place was AutomobileDacia, the only company from the auto industry in a list whose first seven spots were dominated by energy companies. The carmaker’s revenues increased by 44 percent to EUR 4.2 billion in 2013. Its net profit rose to EUR 75 million, from EUR 63 million in 2012.

The report notes that the firm’s results were influenced by the absorption of the 100 percent-owned Renault Industrie Roumanie unit at the beginning of 2013, while it continued to renew and expand its product range. It added that Dacia made a comeback in 2013 after slipping to number seven in the list in 2012.

Overall, the TOP 100 SEE analysis found that carmakers in SEE have seen continuous revenue growth in recent years, from EUR 4.6 billion in 2011 to EUR 9.05 billion in 2013. The combined net profit of carmakers in SEE stood at EUR 138 million in 2013, according to the source.

Besides OMV Petrom Marketing, which came third in the ranking with EUR 3.259 million in revenue last year, two other energy companies round out the top six: Rompetrol Rafinare, with 2013 revenues of EUR 2.637 million, and Rompetrol Downstream, on EUR 1.953 million.

A construction firm, the stateowned road construction and maintenance company Compania Nationala de Autostrazi si Drumuri Nationale din Romania (CNADR) posted the sharpest rise in revenue to reach EUR 2.173 million in 2013. According to the TOP 100 SEE analysis, the company’s total revenues increased largely because of transfers from the state budget.

Elsewhere in SEE, the construction and car manufacturing sectors were among the industries seeing high increases in the combined revenues of the represented companies, by 320 percent and 48 percent respectively, according to the report. Only one con-

structor made the list, however, with two companies in the car tire manufacturing business joining the auto players featured.

Several Romanian retailers made the TOP 100 SEE ranking, among them Kaufland Romania, in 16th position with 2013 revenues of EUR 1,629 million, Carrefour Romania at number 33 with EUR 969.7 million, and Selgros Cash& Carry at number 40 with EUR 787.4 million.

German discount hypermarket chain Kaufland recently opened its 100th store in Romania, having entered the local market nine years ago.

French retailer Carrefour currently operates 162 stores in Romania under five retail brands – 26 Carrefour hypermarkets, 81 Carrefour Market supermarkets, 47 Express proximity outlets, seven Contact proximity stores and one online platform. It also opened its first Supeco store in the country in Ramnicu Valcea, under a concept that combines discounter with cash and carry.

Cash and carry retailer Selgros, which owns 19 stores in Romania, announced this September that it had put EUR 6 million into refurbishing its Baneasa and Berceni outlets in Bucharest, after opening its online platform at the beginning of the year.

fourth year in a row. The local subsidiary of Raiffeisen reported the largest net profit among SEE banks in 2013, at EUR 107.7 million, the report shows.

For bank loans, BRD Groupe Societe Generale came third in the SEE Top 100 for 2013, with loans of EUR 6,191 million, followed by Banca Transilvania at number eight with EUR 3,753 million and UniCredit Tiriac Bank ninth on EUR 3,599 million.

Regionally, the SeeNews report notes that 70 out of the 100 banks making up the chart reported a profit in 2013 “but the overall result of the biggest banks in the region was a negative EUR 2.18 billion.” The combined losses of the institutions included in the 2013 edition amounted to EUR 2.1 million in 2012. The assets of these lenders totaled EUR 246.9 billion at the end of 2013.

Runner up to BCR was Zagrebacka Banka in Croatia, which posted an almost 3 percent rise in assets. The difference between the assets of the two top lenders stood at EUR 216 million.

Some 22 of the banks in the list are from Romania, 18 hail from Bulgaria and Serbia and Slovenia each had 15 lenders on the list.

BCR tops banking ranking

Insurance companies in South-East Europe were faced with challenging market conditions, which affected their profitability and led to a combined net loss of EUR 70 million in 2013. The combined net profit of the top five insurers in SEE amounted to EUR 75.8 million, down 18.3 percent on the previous year, the report notes.

The biggest insurer in the region was Ljubljana-based Zavarovalnica, reporting gross written premiums (GWP) of EUR 605.8 million. In second place came Croatia Osiguranje, with recorded GWP of EUR 343.7 million in 2013.

The Romanian market contributed the most firms to the SEE TOP 100 Insurers ranking, at 21. The highestranked local insurer was Astra, at number six, with GWP of EUR 205.5 million in 2013. It is followed by Allianz – Tiriac Asigurari at number seven with EUR 204.9 million, Omniasig Vienna Insurance Group (formerly BCR Asigurari VIG) eighth with

Erste-owned Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR) led the TOP 100 Banks ranking, with a total of 22 chart entries hailing from Romania. Although its assets dropped 10 percent to EUR 14.16 billion in 2013, BCR maintained its SEE leadership position for the

EUR 103.98 bln combined 2013 revenue of the TOP 100 non-financial companies in SEE

EUR 2.63 bln 2013 net profit of the TOP 100 non-financial companies in SEE

SEE insurers face uneven recovery

www.business-review.ro Business Review | November, 2014

TOP COMPANIES IN SEE 11

MOST PROFITABLE LOCAL COMPANIES Return on revenue 2013

Hidroelectrica on 22.05 percent. Continental Automotive was fifth with a 20.16 percent return on revenue last year.

The best represented industries among the most profitable companies in SEE were energy, telecom, automotive, followed by furniture and decoration and tobacco. Romania-based Holzindustrie Schweighofer ranked seventh in SEE, with a 19.51 return on revenue last year, while British American Tobacco Romania came 20th with 5.70 percent.

Company

Industry 2013

OMV Petrom SA

Petroleum/Natural Gas

25.27%

Romgaz SA

Petroleum/Natural Gas

24.07%

Hidroelectrica SA

Electricity

22.05%

Continental Automotive Products SRL

Rubber/Rubber Products

20.16%

Holzindustrie

Furniture/ Decoration

19.51%

Nuclearelectrica SA

Electricity

18.51%

Methodology of the ranking

Vodafone Romania SA

Telecommunications

12.28%

Orange Romania SA

Telecommunications

11.36%

Dedeman SRL

Wholesale/Retail

10.56%

The SEE TOP 100 ranking covers non-financial companies registered in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Slovenia. Banks, investment intermediaries, insurers and real estate investment trusts (REITs) are excluded from the ranking as total revenue is not an accurate indicator of their performance. Separate rankings were compiled of the largest 100 banks and insurers. Holding companies are represented in the ranking by their subsidiaries.

All data is sourced from national commercial registers, stock exchanges, government and corporate websites, industry regulators and companies themselves.

The initial pool of firms exceeded 1,200. The ranking does not include

Schweighofer SRL

GDF SUEZ Energy SA

Petroleum/Natural Gas

10.31%

Transelectrica SA

Electricity

7.85%

British American Tobacco (Romania) Trading SRL

Food/Drinks/Tobacco

5.70%

Source: Top 100 SEE South-East Europe’s Biggest Companies

EUR 196.5 million of GWP, and Groupama Asigurari in ninth place, with EUR 160 million in GWP. Asirom Vienna Insurance came in at number 15, with GWP of EUR 121.3 million, right after ING Asigurari de Viata, at number 14, with EUR 124.8 million.

Local companies among most profitable businesses Romanian firms also topped the SeeNew chart for profitability, with OMV Petrom taking first spot in the ranking, posting a 25.27 percent return on revenue in 2013. Romgaz came second with 24.07 percent, followed by

companies that declined or failed to provide financial results by the time SEE TOP 100’s content was finalized.

All local currencies in the rankings have been converted into euro, using the respective central bank’s official exchange rate on the last working days of 2013 and 2012. Year-on-year changes in the companies’ financial indicators have been calculated using the figures in the original currency.

SEE TOP 100 banks is a ranking of the largest banks in South-East Europe in terms of total assets from nonconsolidated bal¬ance sheets as of December 31, 2013. All data is sourced from central banks, national commercial registers, financial supervision commissions, bank associations, government and corpo¬rate websites and companies themselves.

The initial data pool exceeded 250 banks registered in the re¬gion, including branches and representative offices of foreign banks.

SEE TOP 100 insurers is a rank¬ing of the largest insurers (ex¬cluding reinsurers) in South-East Europe in terms of gross written premium from non-consolidated income statements for 2013.

All data is sourced from central banks, national commercial registers, financial supervision commissions, insurance asso¬ciations, government

www.business-review.ro Business Review | November, 2014

12 TOP COMPANIES IN SEE BIGGEST LOCAL COMPANIES Company Name OMV Petrom SA Automobile-Dacia SA OMV Petrom Marketing SRL Rompetrol Rafinare SA Compania Nationala de Autostrazi si Drumuri Nationale dinRomania SA Rompetrol Downstream SRL Kaufland Romania SCS British American Tobacco (Romania) Trading SRL Petrotel - Lukoil SA Ford Romania SA Lukoil Romania SRL Electrica Furnizare SA E.ON Energie Romania SA GDF SUEZ Energy SA Complexul Energetic Oltenia SA Orange Romania SA MOL Romania Petroleum Products SRL Carrefour Romania SA Romgaz SA Arcelormittal Galati SA Selgros Cash & Carry SRL Vodafone Romania SA Mediplus Exim SRL Hidroelectrica SA

Industry Petroleum/Natural Gas Automobiles Petroleum/Natural Gas Petroleum/Natural Gas Construction

Total 2013 Revenue (EUR Mln) 4,270 4,155 3,259 2,637 2,173

Petroleum/Natural Gas Wholesale/Retail Food/Drinks/Tobacco

1,953 1,629 1,553

Petroleum/Natural Gas Automobiles Petroleum/Natural Gas Electricity Petroleum/Natural Gas Petroleum/Natural Gas Electricity Telecommunications Petroleum/Natural Gas Wholesale/Retail Petroleum/Natural Gas Metals Wholesale/Retail Telecommunications Wholesale/Retail Electricity

1,289 1,159 1,111 1,069 1,064 1,018 1,018 983.1 974.0 969.7 922.4 867.1 787.4 782.3 741.0 726.8

Source: Top 100 SEE South-East Europe’s Biggest Companies

and cor¬porate websites and companies themselves. The initial data pool exceeds 260 insurers.

SEE TOP 100 listed companies ranks the biggest companies in South-East Europe by market capitalization as of December 31, 2013, sourced by Banja Luka Stock Exchange (BLSE), Belgrade Stock Exchange (BELEX), Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE), Ljubljana Stock Exchange (LSE), Macedonian Stock Exchange (MSE), Montenegro Stock Exchange (MNSE), Sarajevo Stock Exchange (SASE) and Zagreb Stock Exchange (ZSE).

The initial data pool included more than 1,300 public companies located in South-East Europe with their regular and preferred shares. We excluded from the ranking both companies listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, but not headquartered in SEE countries – Erste Group Bank AG (stock symbol EBS) and New Europe Property Investments Plc.(stock symbol NEP).

Most profitable companies is a ranking of the top 20 companies with the highest return on revenue in the SEE TOP 100. Return on revenue is calculated as net profit divided by total revenue, both in euro terms. editorial@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

14 BANKING

Banks tell policymakers to look at EU directive on foreign currency loan conversion With the volume of loans to individuals in foreign currency edging close to EUR 14 billion in September and a growing number of borrowers unable to keep up with bank repayments, a new draft bill has been circulating in Parliament that would help them convert their foreign exchange loans into national currency at the historic exchange rate. ∫ OVIDIU POSIRCA However, banks warn that the approval of this bill would cripple the system, adding that the EU directive clearly stipulates the conversion of loans at the current exchange rate. The draft bill, which has been proposed by left-wing deputy Ana Birchall, is currently under debate in the Chamber of Deputies after it was approved by the Senate. According to the provisions of the bill, banks would have to tell borrowers if their monthly installments exceed by more than 20 percent the amount payable that is calculated based on the exchange rate at the time when the loan was approved. In addition, individual clients will be able to ask for a reconversion of Alexandra Smedoiu, senior manager the foreign exchange loan into national at PWC Romania currency at the historic rate (when the loan was approved).

Mugur Isarescu, governor of the Na- “It is expected that such a conversion tional Bank of Romania (NBR), voiced could trigger significant losses on banks’ strong disapproval of the move, arguing balance sheets, as a result of the foreign that the conversion of loans should be exchange differences, especially for based on negotiations between banks loans granted before 2008 (i.e. due to and borrowers. He added that it can al- RON depreciation against the Euro or ready be done using the current ex- Swiss Franc),” Smedoiu told BR. change rate. “If somebody wants to do “Banks will need to absorb these it (e.n. the conversion) at an historic ex- losses, resulting in an additional burden change rate, it needs to be established on the already strained capital, which who is going to plug the gap – if it will be has been affected by bad debt provicovered by the budget, a guarantee sions. This conversion may also signififund or from customers’ deposits for cantly affect banks’ asset/liability heaven’s sake,” said Isarescu, quoted by management policy, as the mismatch Agerpres newswire. between funds lent (RON) and funds According to a study by the central raised (mostly foreign currency) creates bank and the Association of Romanian an interest rate differential,” she added.

Banks (ARB), lenders stand to lose RON The discussions around the conver14.4 billion (EUR 3.2 billion) over five sion bill intensified after a court in Galati years if loans with lower interest rates in ruled this autumn that Volksbank foreign exchange are converted into the would have to convert a loan taken out local currency, which has higher inter- by a customer in Swiss Francs (CHF) at est rates, by maintaining the higher rate, the exchange rate from the moment the wrote online banking portal loan contract was signed, a difference of bancherul.ro. September data from the 10 percent. However, the court forced NBR show that consumer loans the lender to do so because this proviamounted to RON 26 billion (EUR 5.9 sion was included in the loan contract, billion), while mortgages stood at RON according to bancherul.ro. The news 35 billion (EUR 7.9 billion). portal pointed out that a limited number of contracts include the provision.

Banks will need more capital The lender has appealed the decision.

Bogdan Preda, public relations direcif bill gets approved Banks’ shareholders might have to fi- tor of the Council of Banking Employers nance losses stemming from the ap- in Romania (CPBR), told BR that the proval of bills such as the one conversion of loans at the historic rate permitting loan conversion at historic would “seriously impact banks’ balance rates, either by putting in additional sheets and the stability of the financialcapital or foregoing dividends, said banking system” if aside from the hisAlexandra Smedoiu, senior manager of toric exchange rate the higher interest rates for loans in the national currency tax consulting at PwC Romania.

Bogdan Preda, PR director of the Council of Banking Employers (CPBR)

Monia Dobrescu, partner at Musat & Asociatii

were not taken into account.

Draft bill patches up law until “The destabilization impact would be EU directive is implemented a massive one. This and other matters The bill regulating the conversion of forrelated to the different market values eign currency loans into the national and conditions as part of the reasons currency at the historic exchange rate is that the EU Directives that regulate an intermediary enactment until Directhese situations exclusively and repeat- tive 17/2014 on credit agreements relatedly refer to the exchange rate from the ing to immovable property is moment the conversion is made and transposed into national legislation by not the historic one, considering even March 2016, according to Monia Domore that in Romania the loans were brescu, partner at Musat & Asociatii. granted in the requested foreign cur“Credit denominated in a foreign currency (compared to other countries rency, especially in CHF, has generated where the loans were expressed in for- plenty of litigation between consumers eign currency but were granted in the and credit institutions, mainly because national currency – for instance Hun- the national law does not expressly progary),” said Preda. vide the possibility for consumers to The CPBR comprises six lenders, convert credit agreements relating to a which control about half of the total as- foreign currency loan into an alternative sets in the banking system. Meanwhile, currency and much less how the exFlorin Danescu, executive president of change rate should be applied,” said Dothe ARB, said that the Birchall’s bill brescu. breaches EU directive 17/2014, which She added, “As such, these claims has to be adopted by 2016, stating that were mainly grounded on the abusive the conversion included in the bill can- clauses included in the credit agreenot be applied retroactively. ments concluded with consumers and Tomas Spurny, CEO of BCR, the resulted in a non-uniform national jubiggest lender in Romania, controlled risprudence wherein the national

by Austria’s Erste Bank, told news portal courts ruled differently and quite often Hotnews.ro that the RON could depre- pronounced contradictory solutions.” ciate by 20 percent if the bill regulating Hungary is the first country where the conversion at a historic rate is ap- the government has ordered banks to proved in its current form. “It is a suici- convert foreign-currency loans into the dal law – which I admit, could be in the national currency, in a move designed public interest – but look at the fact that to reduce borrowers’ debt burden. these clients will have to pay more than “Other than that, there has been no such at present if they return to the initial precedent anywhere in the EU, due to loan conditions. If we want social jus- spillover effects,” said Smedoiu of PwC. tice overnight, we risk killing the economy,” said Spurny. ovidiu.posirca@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

OUTSOURCING 15

Millennials make up bulk of Telus International headcount By the end of the year, Telus International Europe will be moving to a new location in Bucharest, which will accommodate more than 500 team members. With an average age of 25, these workers are part of the tech savvy, team oriented and socially aware “Millennial generation.” Jeffrey Puritt, president of Telus International, tells BR that the outsourcing industry is focusing more on IT, engineering and complex services.

Yes, in Romania, this year alone, the Telus International Europe team has grown our revenues by over 250 percent and our team by over 108 percent.

Two and a half times the revenue from a year ago and twice as many team members now employed, earning fair, competitive wages, paying taxes and giving back to their communities is not a bad result, and we’re just getting started!

Moreover, as noted above, at the end of the year, we will be expanding to a new location in Bucharest, a 6,000 sqm office in AFI Park that will accommodate 500+ team members.

∫ OTILIA HARAGA

Photo: Telus International

What are Romania’s main competitor markets for outsourcing in Europe?

I would say that the European countries that currently support the most competitive outsourcing industries are Poland, whose business process outsourcing (BPO) industry grew by 20 percent in 2011, Bulgaria, where Telus International also operates, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Ireland.

For Telus International, when we were looking to invest abroad to upskill our language and more complex BPO capabilities, we started with a list of more than 200 countries and went through a process of elimination based on key criteria.

We identified four areas of focus – demographics, economic and regulatory risk, business requirements and strategic alignment to both enabling Telus in terms of the need for French language support and the multilingual needs of our global customers.

Due to Telus’s need for incremental French language customer support, Romania, with 4.7 million French speakers, was an excellent choice. We also quickly found Romania had the most university graduates annually – 311,000 – the highest of any country in Eastern Europe – together with Romania’s strong reputation for high value and complex outsourcing capabilities, producing approximately 56,000 engineers a year.

Speaking specifically about the global call center industry, there have been some very interesting trends in the last few years. In India, the origins of the industry were voice-based and, over the years, it matured and evolved to more IT-centric back office support.

A similar trend has been going on in the Philippines, which has been supporting the industry for about ten years, where we saw originally voice-based support, which is now evolving to put more focus on IT and engineering and complex services.

I fervently believe that Romania has all of the requisite elements for sustained outsourcing growth and success, provided that foreign investment continues to get support from the local government and business community for a stable, predictable and transparent environment in which to do business.

Do you plan to open more locations in Romania?

We currently have 550 seats in Romania, split between our two locations, with 350 seats in one office in Bucharest and 200 in an office in Craiova.

At the end of the year, we will be expanding to a new location in Bucharest, a 6,000 sqm office in AFI Park that will accommodate another 500+ team members.

AFI Park, with its state-of-the-art offices adjacent to the largest retail mall in Romania, will provide a convenient business environment for our team members.

Will you hire more people? If so, what will be their main focus within the company?

We have 415 team members in Romania as of September 2014. Yes, we expect to employ many more in the coming months and years, focused primarily on providing exceptional customer experience innovation in many languages to meet the needs of our growing global customers.

Our plan is to reach 1,000+ employees in Romania before the end of December 2015. The average age at Telus

International Europe is 25. More than 80 percent of our workforce around the world are Millennials, young people born between 1980 and 2000, who tend to be very tech savvy, team oriented and socially aware.

What is the average stay at Telus for an employee in Romania? What is the level of salaries?

Pay scales in our organization certainly vary widely depending on role, tenure, skill type and location. However, on average, agent starting salaries are more than three-four times the local minimum wage, depending upon these factors. Similarly, a number of elements determine how and why a team member may leave Telus International Europe, but we find on average about 80 percent of team members stay for a year or more.

Our corporate culture is dedicated to promoting from within whenever appropriate, with about 80 percent of promotions handled internally. We like to offer professional, experienced team members the opportunity to move up within our organization.

Do you have other ongoing or future investment plans in Romania?

Do you still believe Romania is a good market for outsourcing?

Yes, I believe there are many things that Romania is doing right to attract foreign investment. (…) It is profoundly important for foreign investors to find a government and regulatory environment that is free from what I call “underground economic forces”.

It is absolutely critical to ensure that the government at all levels does not condone, allow or enable, tacitly or otherwise, its own representatives to ask for or demand bribes in exchange for services/support that in most Western/developed countries are considered business as usual. For example, the issuing of occupancy or building certificates, import licenses or renewals, employee work permits, and so on; all of these should be readily available through standard, documented processes that foreign direct investors can easily discern and comply with.

Certainty, stability and predictability are the hallmarks of one’s ability to appropriately rate risk and effectively determine a return on investment thesis and calculation.

That being said, by continuing to focus on the right things – educating the talent pool, building and enhancing the infrastructure (schools, roads, airport, etc), providing a robust and predictable business and tax regime and ensuring heightened continuity and stability in the regulatory and judicial system – I am confident that Romania will continue to be an appealing destination for foreign direct investment, from Telus, and from others. otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

16 LINKS

Romanian 4G map is getting crowded The deployment of 4G services has taken place at an unprecedented pace in Romania, going from nearly zero in 2013 to close to full coverage at end-2014. BR talked to the main players in this field to find out their current coverage and what services will be improved or introduced on the market once higher mobile internet speeds become more widespread.

4 the future: a new generation in mobile technology is looming, heralding new services and superior transfer speeds on LTE infrastructure

∫ OTILIA HARAGA The deployment of 4G will allow larger bandwidth for mobile internet at peak hours, which includes higher transfer speeds and making multiple data transfers at the same time.

Higher 4G speeds also allow users to commute from a voice call to a video call or transfer files during the conversation, without interruptions.

Current and potential applications can include mobile internet, IP telephony, online video games, HD and even 3D television, videoconferencing, machine-to-machine, cloud computing and so on, Catalin Marinescu, president of ANCOM, tells BR. “Money transfers and phone payments need not only intelligent handsets with NFC functionalities and 4G networks. What is essential for the success of these solutions is a whole ecosystem that should exist outside the telecom sector, and this includes accepted traders and distributors,” Marinescu adds.

The latest ANCOM data date from December 31, 2013, and show that LTE

technology, which facilitates the provision of 4G services, covered only 22 sites in urban areas and 109 in rural Romania.

In 2013, the country had still one of the lowest 4G/LTE coverages, according to data from the European Commission.

At that time, Romania ranked seventh from last place, above only Croatia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Malta and Cyprus.

The top ten included Sweden, Portugal, the Netherlands, Finland, Estonia, Germany, Luxembourg, Denmark, France and Slovenia.

This is mainly due to the specific situation of the 800 MHz frequency, which has superior propagation characteristics that allow it to cover large areas at low costs, compared to other frequencies. The deadline given to the Ministry of National Defense in order to clear up these frequencies was April 8, 2014, said Marinescu.

“Once the 800 MHz licenses came into force, we have every reason to believe that, in the context of competition among operators, we are witnessing the rapid growth of 4G/LTE coverage,

“Investments targeted the expansion so that at the end of 2014 it will be close to the European average,” said ANCOM. of the 4G network, the coverage of Telecom operator Orange Romania, ‘white areas’, signal consolidation in covers 4G over 1,300 towns and villages areas that were already covered, cusand over 90 cities, representing 48 per- tomer experience enhancement for cent of the total population and 78 per- both voice and the internet, as well as maintenance works, to keep a high cent of the urban population.

The Orange 4G network now covers level of network performance and staall Bucharest underground stations, bility,” they add.

The investments made into the netwhile Orange 4G+ services were the first to be launched commercially in work had an effect on the revenues Romania, in six cities: Bucharest, cashed by the company. “Customers’ Brasov, Cluj-Napoca, Galati, Iasi and interest in 4G services and the great variety of 4G smartphones on offer were Timisoara.

At the moment, Orange 4G cus- reflected in sales, which were five times tomers can use 4G services at real aver- higher in the third quarter than in the age speed of 60-80 Mbps. In the 4G+ same period of 2013. One out of two covered areas in Bucharest and another smartphones sold in the first nine five cities, the real average speed is 150 months of the year were 4G,” say Orange representatives.

Mbps.

Recently, Orange recently started a This year, Orange has channeled efforts into a better customer experience new program to refresh its network and launched 4G+ services, offering across the country. The program is part twice the speed of 4G, say Orange rep- of the company’s network development strategy and will be implemented resentatives.

According to company officials, the by 2016.

“In five counties our customers can level of investment made by Orange Romania in 2013 was the highest since already enjoy better 2G and 3G coverthe beginning of the economic crisis, 30 age, data transfer at higher speeds and voice services at higher quality. Our expercent higher than in 2009.

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014 pansion plan contains over 200 isolated locations currently without coverage from any operator and also new growth in 4G coverage,” says the company.

Last year, Orange launched Orange TV, a multiscreen service for TV sets and also on mobile devices via internet.

“By mid-September, Orange TV Go app had been downloaded and upgraded for more than 800,000 times,” say company officials.

Orange’s portfolio of 4G smartphones now includes 35 models, out of which three are 4G+ compatible. By the end of November, the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 will be added to the 4G+ collection.

“In only six months after Orange extended 4G coverage throughout the country, the number of 4G active smartphones in its network doubled.

At the same time, internet traffic has intensified in the last period, with 70 percent growth in the third quarter versus the same period of last year, mainly due to the traffic registered in 4G network,” say Orange representatives.

Telecom operator Vodafone Romania also saw 4G as a priority investment and development target in 2014.

Currently, Vodafone’s 4G network in Romania covers approximately 81 percent of the urban population and 45 percent of the population of the entire country.

“Our 4G coverage has increased to 81

LINKS 17 percent of the urban population and as a result, we have nearly doubled the number of users of 4G subscriptions in the entire customer base, in the last quarter,” say Vodafone officials.

In addition to the regular annual investments, Vodafone Romania will be investing EUR 55 million into the network and stores over the next two years, via the Spring program.

Recently, Vodafone launched VoLTE, an innovation in voice calls, and it is also testing Call+, which allows users to commute without interruptions between voice and video calls and share media files during an ongoing conversation.

Also this year, Vodafone Romania launched M-Pesa, allowing customers to send and receive money and make payments by mobile phone without needing a bank account.

M-Pesa was a first in Romania as well as in Europe in the Vodafone 4G, 3G and 2G network for any subscriber or prepay card user.

Vodafone Romania currently has 58 4G compatible handsets in its portfolio.

The models that are compatible with Call + in the operator’s portfolio are the Samsung Galaxy S5, Sony Xperia Z2 and Huawei Ascent P7 The recently rebranded Telekom Romania is in the process of developing the 4G network, covering 50 percent of the urban population and 27 percent of the total population

of Romania.

Telekom Romania covers with 4G 98 percent of Bucharest while in tourist areas such as Brasov and Poiana Brasov, the coverage is 97.7 percent, and 100 percent, respectively.

4G speeds go up to 150 Mbps for download and 50 Mbps for upload.

“It is important to specify that reaching maximum speeds depends on very many factors, such as the type of handset, the coverage area, the type of offer, the weather conditions, and how many users are logged into the same station,” say Telekom Romania representatives.

Customers who are not in the 4G coverage area can enjoy high mobile internet speeds based on dual carrier 3G HSDPA technology, which allows speeds of up to 43.2 Mbps in 269 cities and over 5,056 towns and villages.

“Expanding the 4G network remains for us an investment priority in 2015. In 2014, most investments were targeted into expanding the FTTH, 3G and 4G networks. As a result, the data traffic has increased two-fold compared to the third quarter of 2013, posting considerable growth of 125 percent yearon-year. 4G services expanded significantly, generating 75 percent growth in data traffic and a doubling in the number of 4G active users in Q3, compared to Q2, 2014. Also, revenues from high-speed internet have maintained the growth trend of the previous semesters, posting 26 percent

growth compared to the previous year, as a result of investments in technology,” according to officials.

Telekom Romania has in its offer 22 telephone models that are 4G compatible. Recently, it launched Speedsurfer, the first smartphone under the T brand that is compatible with 4G speeds.

Recently, the company launched Telekom TV, a web and mobile service offering a lineup of channels with exclusive content and hundreds of titles on request, which should for best results be used on a 4G connection. The Telekom TV app can be downloaded from Google Play and AppStore by Android and iOS users.

“The 4G connection will allow users to migrate on the mobile those activities that not so long ago were possible only through fixed internet, on the PC such as gaming, video and conferences.

At the same time, 4G technology allows an improvement in existing services (we are talking about speeds that are six times higher), such as mobile payments and mobile banking. Last but not least, 4G technology is an excellent engine for innovation. We estimate the most innovation will take place in the cloud services area but also TV content and entertainment,” say Telekom Romania operations representatives. otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

PARTNER CONTENT

Bucharest commuters can test 4G speeds with Orange subway app Telecom operator Orange Romania, with a customer base of 10.5 million at September 30, 2014, announced the launch of the application Metroul Orange 4G. With Metroul Orange 4G, Bucharest subway commuters can test 4G speeds, simply by scanning a QR code inscribed on promotion materials posted in the Bucharest subway stations. Once they have registered, commuters gain free access to music, documentaries, audiobooks and games.

The media campaign was handled by Initiative Media, part of Lowe group, which is preparing a series of original activations that represent premieres on the local media landscape. ”We have tried a different approach, to match the message we are conveying. Since we are talking about innovation, we must come up with new formats to ensure visibility. Together with the providers, we have spent a great deal of time in subway stations trying to create unconventional and surprising locations. We needed differentiation in the extremely crowded space of

the Bucharest subway. We are proud to have achieved many premieres for such a nice and impactful project,”said Anca Stancov, head of media, Orange.

From Orange, the team that worked on the campaign included Crina Tenovici, head of data and B2B communication, Mirela Bosoi, head of brand and communication, Anca Stancov, head of media and Mihai Dobre, media specialist.

The Initiative team that worked on implementation included Anca Tanase, account manager, Alexandru Miu, senior OOH manager, Alina Gruianu, account director & head of unit.

The creation of the campaign is signed by Publicis.

The Bucharest subway has four main lines, each of these about to become a 4G entertainment line: the gaming line (Dristor- Pantelimon), the music line (Berceni- Pipera), the film line (Preciziei- Anghel Saligny) and the audiobook line (Gara de Nord- Parc Bazilescu).

Metroul Orange 4G includes perspicacity games, especially created for this app, melodies from the Orange spots, films from the Anim’est cartoon festival, Discovery documentaries and a wide range of Humanitas books.

Orange customers who enter the app stand to win one of the nine prizes up for grabs, consisting in a LG G Pad 8.0 tablet and a Colibri 17 subscription with 12 GB of traffic for 3 months.

Metroul Orange 4G can be downloaded from the Play Store and App Store, and is compatible with smartphones with Android or iOS. The application can be accessed by scanning the QR codes available on the materials at the subway, and the traffic in the application is free of charge for Orange customers.

The campaign activation takes place between November and will end on January 5th.

To make the campaign more visible, the Initiative solution goes beyond the clasical display formats.

The columns at Piata Victoriei subway station were transformed into a giant billboard that offers all commuters equal access to highspeed internet.

In the Universitate subway stations, the information billboards, the platform and the stairs were branded accordingly, to convey the information to travellers.

Orange recently launched 4 G at the Bucharest subway as well as 4G+ in six Romanian cities. The Orange 4G network provides average real speeds of up to 60-80 Mbps for 78 percent of the urban population and up to 150 Mbps in Bucharest and five other cities, as part of the first 4G+ commercial network.

Orange Romania posted total revenues of EUR 227.4 million for the third quarter, ended September 30, 2014, up 3.4 percent on the same period in 2013, if excluding the impact of the cut in termination rates.

Since the start of the year, Orange Romania revenues sum up EUR 675.7 million.

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

18 INTERVIEW

Compelling evolution For the head of BDR Associates Communication Group, Catalina Rousseau, the economic crisis has been the outside factor that has compelled the local public relations and media market to evolve, in an economy lacking strategy and sustained mainly by the immense effort of the private sector and the outstanding creativity of the entrepreneurial community. She talked to Business Review about the industry’s main sources of growth and the potential of Romanian-owned companies to use sophisticated communication tools. ∫ ANCA IONITA If you had to do a SWOT analysis of the local PR/media market, what would be the main three key points you would highlight?

A very creative industry, I would say a world of talents! This has been confirmed at international level so many times. I have been a member of the international jury of professionals for the PR Excellence Awards for seven years.

The most frequent question asked by my fellow members, whether wellknown CEOs of multinational PR groups or top professionals from various European countries, is what is the secret of such outstanding creativity always coming from Romania.

One other remarkable feature: a dynamic and fast-moving industry, instantly assimilating the most progressive communication tools, being at home in the digital era.

Among its vulnerabilities there is leadership of true values still to be learned, not enough orientation towards strategic thinking, and some players are influenced by other disciplines such as advertising which results in losing content or consistent messaging, which only PR can deliver, helping clients step out of the crowd, loudly and proudly.

What are the key features of the local PR market? Where, do you think, is the potential for growth?

We at BDR have always followed the market trends and tried to meet the client’s needs in a still unpredictable economic environment, as long as economic growth is still dominated and dictated by the political factor. The economic crises have forced us to have high flexibility in developing competencies for meeting the ad-hoc needs of our clients, in a fast way. The key potential of growth is therefore strategic communication, an advanced discipline combining sophisticated tools such as research-based strategies, gathering intelligence, specialized analyses and public affairs capacities with creative and out of the box approaches in what concerns brand communication and branding in general. Basically, strategic thinking and creativity are the keywords in this industry nowadays, for those who want their business to grow and differentiate. The others will just

CV Catalina Rousseau

survive.

We learned this lesson in the early stage of the economic recession, and we have put a serious effort into training our team in order to be able to bring intelligent and creative solutions for our clients in need. We invested in people and in new communication tools, exactly when the economic environment was the least friendly. We expanded our work in other markets, using our knowhow as a powerful tool to position BDR, as an independent agency in foreign markets. This means evolution and a vision for future. One has no choice but to force evolution, especially when there is no concrete participation from the part of the authorities, and no coherent vision in support of the tremendous efforts made by the private sector. I think this is a valid statement for local entrepreneurs from all over the country, who had the courage to take the risk and start up their own business in the early stage of capitalism in Romania, and found strong partners abroad, willing to invest here. Their performance is outstanding. Romania has made progress in many directions and sectors of activity thanks to such courageous and intelligent people, many of them less known, or completely unknown by the public.

This category of entrepreneurs has reached that stage of awareness when reputation management, public image or crisis prevention has become important for business growth. I see here fresh potential and another promising direction of activity for the PR industry in the coming years.

We keep facing challenging times that tell us that the future of the communication industry is reserved for vision in business, strategic thinking, creativity and consistency from PR activities.

Do Romanian-owned companies allocate large enough budgets to PR? The Romanian entrepreneur who has developed a business as a small or medium-size company, who pays taxes and invests in human resources or new technologies does not always have enough financial capacity for such budgets, as that person’s priorities are elsewhere. There are the big Romanian companies who have found strong support for development in communication services, yet in these cases budgets are more generously allocated to advertising. Last but not least there is a limited number of Romanian entrepreneurs with impressive turnover every year, who do not value commu-

Rousseau is the president & CEO of BDR Associates Communication Group, which she founded in November 1995. She has more than 22 years of experience in strategic communication and crisis management, and is highly specialized in designing, planning and coordinating PR and communication strategies to assist private national and multinational companies, governmental and international institutions.

In 2002, she set up the BDR Associates office in the Republic of Moldova and in 2003 she signed with Hill + Knowlton Strategies, part of WPP, the affiliation of BDR Associates to the international group. Since 2005, her agency has participated in various pitches in Bulgaria and Ukraine, followed by Azerbaijan and Georgia in 2013 and 2014, respectively.

In 2005, she brought to Romania the Superbrands programs, and has been the official representative of the Superbrands organization in the local market ever since. Since 2007, she has been a standing member in the international jury for the European Excellence Awards.

She holds a BA degree in foreign languages and literature, and speaks English and French fluently. nication of any kind, even in crisis situations, which some of them face quite frequently I would say!

Our client portfolio has always included at least one Romanian company per year. Yet in figures such clients have never represented more than 5 percent of our annual turnover.

It is time that companies and clients appreciate the value of such specialized, often sophisticated assistance, and adjust budgets to support agencies’ communication efforts, in an appropriate way.

The future in communication also means value in money, wisely spent by those who look for valuable results, and for the return of investment made in communication services. anca.ionita@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

INTERVIEW 19

Going local on a changing ad scene Gabriela Nanu, client service director at Saatchi & Saatchi, tells BR about the shift towards locally developed communication projects and what they mean for both client and agency. a cohesive long-term plan. It is a pity that sometimes these simple steps are completely ignored.

∫ SIMONA FODOR What determines the preference for locally or regionally developed projects? How did the trend emerge?

Our world has changed, but people are still motivated by two instinctive attributes – reason and emotion.

Media habits have also changed dramatically, but people still only react to what is relevant to them. So great advertising is what is was always meant to be, not advertising, but inspiration, information, utility and anything that is relevant to people.

Global advertising was brought about by global brands’ need for consistency in communication across countries. Today, the globalization of advertising is largely motivated by international budget “optimization”.

This has created a fine balance between maintaining international communication for brand consistency while sometimes ignoring relevant local insights for the sake of cost savings. Marketers need to ask the question: in the long run, is this really optimal?

Consumers don’t have the same access to “behind the scenes”; in their perception, they are not consumers, they are, as stated above, people. As people, they don’t care where, why or for how many countries a campaign is created, they simply find the message relevant or not. So that leaves us with the question: is preference for local or global a matter of choice or a matter of necessity?

What are the advantages, for the client, of a locally developed communication project? At a strategy level, what does it entail?

First of all, it is very important for local talent to be used to the best of its abilities. When things change unpredictably and competition moves very fast, local talent provides autonomy, combining an entrepreneurial spirit that you cannot replicate with an international approach. A more flexible and horizontal system allows quick, relevant feedback from local insights.

Simply put, multinationals can no longer afford to try to be perfectionist and control markets from a distance.

They need to have troops on the

ground.

With globalization putting pressure on cultural identities, and by consequence also on individual identities, the opposite reaction emerges: the need to keep or re-interpret traditional identities from our cultural heritage. So, when speaking about local communication, we don’t refer to the actual location where it is created, but rather talk about communication that is in line with the cultural characteristics of a particular place or even several places in a region. Clients are looking for a quick response, efficient and cost effective communication.

Why would they settle for anything less?

Take a global brand story and adapt it to a local personality. Both authenticity and sense of purpose are key to success. People have unlimited, free access to information, they talk to each other, they are now in dialog, they have the choice to talk to your brand or just “block” it from the conversation. It won’t be long until TV advertising becomes yet another choice, so the last big monolog ad channel will also become yet another means of personal expression.

It is real value (relevance) that a brand offers to remain on people’s ever changing “favorites” list. Once you are off the list, it is infinitely more difficult to get back on.

These days, if you are not ahead of the curve, you are in trouble. I don’t believe that enough people are thinking enough about this.

What do these types of projects generally involve, resource wise (HR, budgets, market research)?

Projects that are developed using local particularities, be it for one or several markets in a region, do not automatically necessitate larger teams.

We believe in a process (including budgets) that enables talented marketing people and integrated agencies to think strategically across all relevant markets. We have proven this as a hub for the Balkans for the past ten years.

There is no shortage of local market research. What makes the difference is asking the right questions, digging deeper when many just scratch the surface, going beyond the obvious and having the courage to act upon the right local insights to create

What recent communication projects has Saatchi developed locally?

Over 90 percent of all our revenue comes from locally produced projects and this is no coincidence, due to clients’ clear strategic intentions and a lot of hard work.

With so many new ways of connecting with consumers, choosing the right path and delivering the right message is the difference between wasting your budget or not.

We have a strong history of successful integrated campaigns. Clients are recognizing the importance of integration as they see the value (and saved time) of meeting one agency that can deal with all their marketing needs.

Milka, Head & Shoulders, Pampers, and VISA are examples of brands that understand that while people trust global brand reputation, they still value uniqueness and what it means to them in their everyday lives. From local endorsements, to improved understanding of product benefits, to changing consumer habits and educating the market, local initiatives have proven to be the underlying factor in bringing concrete results (financial) and brand image on the Romanian market.

Luckily our strategic and creative expertise is put to good use by clients who develop their entire communication locally. Raiffeisen Bank and Rompetrol are just two great examples of businesses that, simply put, cannot be “not local” and do a fantastic job at understanding their customers’ needs.

To conclude, nothing and everything has changed in the world of “glocal” communication and the 21st century will belong to those able to “learn, unlearn, and relearn” as Alvin Toffler eloquently stated. Our world is changing at a dizzying pace. Keeping up with all these changes is our biggest challenge. However, in a competitive environment such as Romania, we feel it brings out the best in our people. So far so good. simona.fodor@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

20 PROPERTY

Higher expectations for high-end residential market The number of high-end apartment blocks that have either been delivered or are presently under construction in Bucharest has almost tripled in 2014 compared to two years ago. Is the top end of the residential segment back in expansion mode? BR talked to real estate pundits to find out.

Photo: Stejarii Residential Club

A multicultural neighborhood: foreigners represent 85 percent of residents of high-end residential projects in northern Bucharest

∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN Two high-end residential projects totaling an investment of about EUR 36 million have been announced in Bucharest in the past month and overall the sector is on the up. The number of upmarket apartment blocks that have either been delivered or are now under construction in Bucharest increased to 22 in the first nine months of this year compared to only 8 in the period 2012-2013, according to analysis by HomeFinders.ro.

These projects are being developed in central neighborhoods such as Primaverii, Kiseleff-Aviatorilor, and Dorobanti for average prices of EUR 3,396/sqm in Primaverii and EUR 2,910/sqm in Dorobanti, according to the same source. By comparison, the

average asking price for new apartments in Bucharest was EUR 1,178/sqm this August, according to data from Imobiliare.ro.

An overused and abused concept The difference in pricing is most often the main indicator that a property is a luxury one, but one characteristic of the local market is that a higher price is not necessarily a guarantee, real estate pundits warn. The term “luxury” is overused and few of the properties currently being promoted as such deserve this tag, they believe.

“Lately, almost every new residential project is promoted as a ‘luxury’ property only because the developer has invested in better finishes or a modern façade,” Emanuel Postoaca,

GM of real estate agency Nordis, told BR. Overall, luxury projects in Romania distinguish themselves through marketing strategy and asking price rather than the actual product strategy, added Georgian Marcu, owner and broker at Green Angels. “Any properties that are located in a good area or have quality finishes are promoted as being luxury, but we also see ‘luxury’ projects in non-central areas in so-called working-class neighborhoods or just outside the city,” he told BR. Even in traditional “luxury” areas such as Herastrau, for example, there are properties in blocks located 4-5 meters from one another which are still promoted as “luxury” properties, he said.

So what should a residential project actually feature in order to count

as a luxury development? A premium location such as the Primaverii, Aviatorilor, Kiseleff, Herastrau or Dorobanti neighborhoods is a must but is not enough by itself.

“There is a mix of factors – the location, living concept, architecture and an exceptional panoramic view unobstructed by unaesthetic buildings. There are also the services it must provide – from a doorman to concierge services,” outlined Marcu.

An impressive lobby, a gym, an indoor pool and a basement laundry are on the list as well. “The surfaces of both the apartments and the communal areas should be generous and the apartment height above the 2.8 m average. High quality finishes are also a requirement for such a project,” he summed up.

continued on page 22

www.business-review.ro Business Review | November, 2014

22 PROPERTY

Andreea Cojocaru, sales director at Stejarii Residential Club

continued from page 20

Georgian Marcu, owner and broker at Green Angels

Premier Estate is the marketing and sales representatives of SKV PropWhile the term “luxury” continues erties, which announced in October to be overused and abused, one thing that it had begun works on a high-end is clear – potential buyers are becom- residential project – 49 Gafencu – close ing increasingly more “informed, se- to Herastrau Park in Bucharest. The lective and demanding, something project will require an estimated inthat is understandable for this type of vestment of some EUR 30 million and will feature 110 apartments which are apartment,” said Postoaca.

“Customer expectations have risen due for completion in the first quarter considerably in relation to what the of 2016.

The flats can already be bought for market offers. The question is whether buyers can afford this level of prices starting at EUR 1,500/sqm (VAT quality and not fall again into the trap included) and going as high as EUR we saw during the boom years when a 2,500/sqm (VAT included). The target clear difference between buyers’ de- is to sell about 40 percent of the mands and their financial possibilities homes by the end of next year, added Comsa. was not made,” warned Marcu.

The project targets customers with above average incomes and who are Entering a new phase?

Developers too have been upgrading generally demanding in terms of their offer. On one hand, the projects lifestyle. “They have their savings in being built today look different. “Over bank deposits or have invested them the last two or three years, we have on the stock exchange or investment seen an improvement in the premium funds, and when given the alternative segment, especially in terms of exte- to make a more attractive investment rior architecture. But we are quite far choose an apartment in the project,” from what this segment should look said the managing director. The value is set to increase by between 8 and 16 like” added Marcu.

There are more profound changes percent by the first semester of 2016 too, such as developers showing a when it will be delivered, she believes.

Overall, the entire real estate mar“more efficient approach in terms of building and maintenance costs,” ket has performed well this year, say Andreea Comsa, managing director at industry representatives. “Most playPremier Estate, told BR. Before the ers on the residential market reported crisis the motto was that anything positive signs in the first nine months sells at any price and costs were of this year. Besides, all real estate segnot a priority for developers. Come ments have experienced a significant the crisis everything changed and increase and the overall evolution is many developers whose projects upwards compared to the previous didn’t meet the shift in demand year,” Andreea Cojocaru, sales direcwent bust. “The luxury projects being tor at Stejarii Residential Club, told BR. The high-end segment, along with built today offer a perfect balance between location, the quality of the entire residential market, has exconstruction, efficient space alloca- perienced a positive evolution this tion for the apartments and commu- year and there is further potential for nal areas, quality finishes and the growth, agrees Postoaca. “Right now, asking price. Together, all these fea- we have a lot of demand from buyers tures are tailored to current market for the Herastrau, Dorobanti, Priconditions and have generated an in- maverii and Kiseleff areas, but relacrease in the luxury segment,” she tively few projects have been said, adding that sales are on an up- developed over the past few years,” he said. ward trend.

Andreea Comsa, managing director at Premier Estate

The time is right to start such new projects, thinks Comsa. Developers who benefit from a good location and a project with above-market quality are now plucking up the courage to invest, she added. “So, we can say that today we’re seeing the start of projects targeting both the upper middle class and customers who want luxury apartments,” she commented.

Marcu agrees that both demand and the number of transactions involving high-end properties are on the rise, but stresses that this is not enough to suggest a trend. “I don’t believe that there is currently a high and unmet demand for luxury properties,” he said. One example in this sense is the Prezan Boulevard which is full of residential developments, none of which are in the luxury segment, he believes. Another example is the tender for the Triumf Hotel, a property that could meet all the criteria necessary for reconversion into a luxury residential project but did not attract a buyer, he went on.

And the recent news is not necessarily a sign that developers have an appetite for high-end investments.

“This is just a perception that developers have, and unfortunately they continue to come up with unsuitable projects for the segment they target. It is obvious that we will have some losers in this game,” he warned.

Rental rules A particularity of the high-end residential segment is that, compared to the overall residential market, it is dominated by rental transactions.

Given its other specifics this is normal, say realtors: the renting process takes less time than the selling process and many buyers acquire such properties to rent them out. “In a premium location such as Nordului Road-Herastrau, Kiseleff or Primaverii, a rented apartment generates a yield of about 5 to 7 percent per year while the interest rate for savings in euro is 1.5 percent on average. This has boosted the number of

Emanuel Postoaca, GM of Nordis

apartments being bought to be subsequently sold for capital gains,” said Postoaca.

Another market specific is that expats are the main tenants of high-end residential projects. For example, they represent 85 percent of residents of projects located in the Nordului RoadHerastrau area, according to data from Nordis. When it comes to acquisitions however, foreigners make up only 10 percent of buyers.

Rental transactions are so important on this segment that some projects are developed for this purpose alone. One such project is Stejarii Residential Club which was delivered in 2010 by Tiriac Imobiliare in Bucharest’s Baneasa neighborhood.

Rentals have performed well this year and their number was up by 20 percent between January and September compared to the same period of 2013, said Cojocaru. The occupancy rate presently stands at 75 percent and given the rise this year, it is expect to increase further in 2015. Monthly rents in this category start at EUR 1,000 for a one-bedroom apartment and reach EUR 2,400 for a three-bedroom unit.

This positive performance was generated by customized offers, more active involvement from real estate agencies and premium residential projects’ proximity to sought-after educational establishments, she believes.

The typical tenant profile is expat, aged between 35 and 45, married with one child and staying in Romania for between one and three years, she outlined. Some 65 percent of the club’s tenants are expats while the remaining 35 percent are top local managers and entrepreneurs.

A project’s location, membership of a multicultural community, diverse range of services and proximity to commercial centers and schools are the main reasons expats choose to live in a high-end residential project. simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

www.business-review.ro Business Review | November, 2014

INTERVIEW 23

Hilton Athenee Palace Bucharest gets ready for EUR 8 mln facelift Investing in hotel refurbishments, developing new restaurant concepts and improving services are the main objectives that Ana Hotels, the owner of Hilton Athenee Palace Bucharest and six other hotels, has for 2015, Alexandra Copos de Prada, the company’s CEO and chairwoman of the board, told BR. ∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN Any investment plans for the seven hotels in your portfolio?

We always have such plans in mind. A characteristic of the hotel industry is that every five to seven years a major investment in upgrading the rooms and living spaces is needed.

The next couple of years will be very exciting for us from this perspective because we are getting ready to start refurbishing all the rooms at Athenee Palace Hilton Bucharest.

It will require an investment of more than EUR 8 million, part of which will come from bank loans, and it will take about two years to complete. The rooms will be refurbished in phases so that activity will not be disrupted.

We will also invest in refurbishing the hotel’s ten conference halls.

This project will start in December and will be completed in March next year.

At Crowne Plaza Bucharest we began refurbishing the rooms at the beginning of summer. It will require around EUR 2.5 million and next year we will focus on the fitness and spa center. Our other hotels – Sport Hotel & Spa, Poiana and Bradul in Poiana Brasov and Europa Hotel & Spa in Eforie Nord – have undergone upgrades recently and are in a very good state.

Another investment that we have in mind is developing self-standing restaurants with innovative concepts for Crowne Plaza, Sport Hotel & Spa in Poiana Brasov and Europa Hotel & Spa in Eforie Nord. For a restaurant of about 200-300 sqm this would mean an investment of around EUR 100,000 per unit, which will go into design as the restaurants are already equipped.

What impact will the refurbishment at Athenee Palace Hilton Bucharest have on the hotel’s business?

We are making this investment because a refurbishment was needed.

The rooms are fine as they are today, but this is Athenee Palace Hilton Bucharest and one expects a certain standard. It will also mean higher rates in order to cover part of the investment. When most of the rooms are refurbished we will be able to do

CV Alexandra Copos de Prada March 2014 – present – CEO & chairwoman of the board at Ana Hotels, which owns seven hotels, including Hilton Athenee Palace Bucharest and Crowne Plaza Bucharest

this. There isn’t yet a final decision on how much the rates will go up but it will mostly be in the range of 5-10 percent. The hotel market remains competitive, but there are few hotels in Bucharest with Hilton’s renown and we believe that there is a rather large segment of clients who will pay rates that are several percentage points above the competition in order to stay at the Hilton.

How have the hotel industry and the Ana Hotels business evolved so far this year?

Bucharest, at least the downtown area, has seen a significant increase in demand. For example, at Hilton Athenee Palace occupancy was up by 9 percent this year with rates similar to last year. In August, for example, occupancy went above 92 percent.

In north Bucharest the increase was smaller, but overall there is an upward trend. In Poiana Brasov and Eforie Nord the situation is different because a lot depends on the weather and this has not been favorable this year in either the winter or the summer season. But even so, we’ve had positive results. In the summer months we reported the highest occupancy rate ever at our mountain hotels in Poiana Brasov. This was mainly because of business events and conferences.

Have both the leisure and MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and events) segments gone up this year?

The MICE segment has increased

August 2014 – present – CEO & chairwoman of the board at Ana Pan, a bakery and pastry business that is part of Ana Holding alongside Ana Hotels and several other companies. Ana Holding was founded in 1990 by Gheorghe Copos, Alexandra Copos de Prada’s father July 2012 – September 2012 – Brand intern at St Regis & Luxury Collection August 2007 – July 2009 – Business analyst at McKinsey & Company 2011 – 2013 – MBA, Wharton Business School 2010 – 2013 – Master’s in public administration from Harvard University Kennedy School of Government 2003 – 2007 – MA, Princeton University

significantly at Crowne Plaza in Bucharest as it has for our hotels in the mountains and at the seaside.

The incoming segment, too, went up.

There were more tourist groups arriving in Bucharest, mostly from the EU and Israel. The latter are interested in local casinos and mountain resorts in particular.

Danube cruises have become popular and this has also helped.

These tourists arrive in Bucharest, stay here for up to three nights on average and then continue their trip elsewhere in Romania. Our Ana Aslan Spa in Eforie Nord is very popular among foreign tourists, for example.

Back in Bucharest, Hilton in particular has benefitted from the increasing number of tourists.

What will Ana Hotels’ revenues be this year and what are the targets for 2015?

Last year’s revenues were around EUR 25 million and in 2014 we will post growth of about 6-7 percent, so about EUR 26.5 million. For 2015 we are expecting similar growth to this year.

What are your objectives for Ana Hotels in 2015?

Besides the investments I mentioned before, we are also investing in improving our services. The target is to reach a service quality level similar to what can be found in Asian hotels and to be well ahead of the local market in two years’ time.

With this in mind we are investing in developing an in-house training program for our staff. Secondly and thirdly we will invest in developing self-standing restaurant concepts and expanding our spa services in Poiana Brasov and Crowne Plaza by building on the experience we have from Eforie Nord with the Ana Aslan spa.

On the medium term we are also looking at expanding into hotel management. We have already received offers to take over the management of hotels in Romania as well as in the Republic of Moldova and Bulgaria.

How do you expect the hotel market to evolve overall in 2015?

The market is growing overall, albeit minimally – we see it at around 3-4 percent. There is also the news about the EU economy which is not very encouraging. Back in Romania, cutting VAT would be very helpful. The contribution that the hotel and F&B industries make to Romania’s GDP is around 2 percent, while in Bulgaria it is almost double, not to mention the level in countries like Spain and France.

So reducing VAT to 9 percent would be most helpful. It would also create domino effects throughout the entire economy.

It would incentivize people to spend more and help fight tax evasion so it would also generate higher tax revenues for the state in the long run. simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

24 FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT

Romania should be on foreign investment map Participants at the Foreign Investors Summit FIS, organized by Business Review, agreed that Romania needs to be on the foreign investment map and debated how the current legislative framework is impacting their activity.

1.

1

The

opening

panel

of

the

three-day Foreign Investors Summit (L to R): Cosmin Vasile, managing partner of Zamfirescu Racoti&Partners; Darius Bogdan Valcov, delegate budget minister with the Ministry of Finance; state secretary Alexandru Nastase;

Dante

Stein,

personal

advisor to the prime minister of Romania; Mihai Bogza, president of the Foreign Investors Council; Lucian Croitoru, counselor to the governor of the National Bank of Romania.

2.

Speakers

in

the

first

panel

highlighted the need to keep Romania an attractive investment destination 3. The summit attracted a diverse audience of professionals 2

∫ Foreign investors fear the government may have to increase the tax burden for fair-dealing companies, to compensate for the gap in revenues caused by tax evasion, said Mihai Bogza, president of the Foreign Investors Council (FIC), on the first day of the Foreign Investors Summit (FIS). Bogza commented that investors have seen that the judiciary and prosecutors “have started to do their job” recently, but warned that this was just the “tip of the iceberg”.

“When I talk about corruption I am not referring only to the public sector, but also to the private sector, because we are still seeing a high level of tax evasion that is perpetuated by certain com-

3

panies in the private sector, with a port Promotion (DPIIS), said that his major negative impact because it dis- “main priority is placing Romania on the global investment map. (…) Today Rotorts competition,” said Bogza.

He added, “The taxes that are not mania is recommended by the three collected from these companies will major rating agencies: Fitch, Moody’s eventually be collected through an in- and Standard & Poor’s”.

During the same session of the event, crease in taxes for good payers, which will give Romania, despite the progress Lucian Croitoru, advisor to the governor registered in the recent period, includ- of the Central Bank (BNR), said GDP ing the reduction of social insurance growth this year would struggle to get contributions (CAS), a tax burden above above 1.5 percent, after rising by 3.6 percent last year, while inflation would the EU average.”

The FIC president also noted that in- amount to 2 percent in December. vestors are disappointed by the low ab- Croitoru suggested that foreign investsorption of EU funds and the slow ments were key to helping the local development of infrastructure projects. economy meet its growth potential, Alexandru Nastase, secretary of adding that country had grown by an state in the Department for Infrastruc- average of 1.7 percent, when it worked ture Projects, Foreign Investments, “on its own”, without subsidies or capital Public Private Partnership (PPP) and Ex- inflows. “Romania started this year op-

timistically regarding expectations for economic growth. In my opinion, growth will barely exceed 1.5 percent this year in Romania, after 3.6 percent last year. This also reflects the problems in the Euro zone and beyond,” said Croitoru.

The government and the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, estimate a growth rate of 2.5 percent this year. The International Monetary Fund recently improved the country’s growth outlook to 2.4 percent, against a previous forecast of 2.2 percent. The World Bank, meanwhile, forecasts a 2.8 percent gain for Romania this year, upgrading its January estimate of 2.5 percent. editorial@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

26 FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT

Automotive industry facing overcrowding in western Romania The concentration of suppliers for the automotive industry in central and western Romania will make it harder for fresh investors to break into the market and find enough specialists, say players. Some of the areas previously overlooked by investors due to lack of industrial and logistics infrastructure are now looking more attractive. Carmakers, meanwhile, are continuing to focus on exports, with domestic sales accounting for just 5 percent of their total sales last year, with imports of used cars holding a constant leading share of the market. ∫ OVIDIU POSIRCA

Car output of Dacia Renault and Ford Romania in 2013

Sales stall at home

Dacia – 342,620 Ford – 68,339 Photo: Mihai Constantineanu

Speaking during the first Foreign Investors Summit (FIS), organized by BR last month, Constantin Stroe, president of the Association of Automotive Manufacturers in Romania (ACAROM), pointed out that in the last 11 years, out of the cars registered in Romania only one was new while the rest were used.

“Dacia and Ford sold only 5 percent of their production in Romania, while the rest was exported. This is a worrying percentage and we are concerned by it because I can’t believe we will live forever on car exports,” said Stroe.

According to data from ACAROM, Dacia exported 294,526 units last year, accounting for 93 percent of its total production. Ford, meanwhile, exported its entire production of 68,353 cars. In 2013, 221,852 used cars were imported into Romania. In addition, total car exports soared 26 percent to EUR 3.2 billion in 2013 against the previous year, while car parts exports moved up by 23 percent to EUR 8.1 billion, show data from the National Statistics Institute.

Stroe suggested the country has untapped potential in the production of car components, adding that northeastern Romania could further develop based on smart policies. However, the poor road infrastructure is putting a drag on future investment plans. “This is a sector that provides jobs in Romania

Driving away: panelists debated issues such as the dominance of exports on Romania’s car market

and I have my own concerns whether it can be maintained and increased further if we do not also do something else, and here I mean the Pan-European corridor 4, linking the Ardeal (west) and Muntenia (south) regions through Valea Oltului,” said Stroe. The total turnover of the local automotive sector grew by 26 percent year-on-year to EUR 16.9 billion in 2013, making up over 11 percent of GDP. Out of this figure, Dacia and Ford reported turnovers of EUR 4.16 billion and EUR 1.1 billion, respectively.

Source: ACAROM

Continental Automotive Systems Autoliv Takata Continental Automotive Delphi Packard Delphi Diesel Systems TRW Automotive Safety Systems Leoni Wiring Systems Yazaki Hella Total

Cost of one labor hour in the local manufacturing sector

Source: ACAROM

nance new investments. According to Viorel Ciocoiu, adviser to the secretary of state and head of the foreign investment, international affairs and promotion directorate at the Department for Infrastructure projects, Foreign InvestState aid sends signal The automotive industry has been the ments, Public Private Partnerships most active in drawing on state aid to fi- (PPP) and Expert Promotion (DPIIS), the sector has attracted almost EUR 400 million in state aid. This is 45 percent of all the aid disbursed over 2007-2014.

“I truly believe we have what it takes to turn investment projects into success Turnover Number stories, especially in the automotive in 2013 (EUR mln) of employees sector. We have the drive, the tradition and the skilled workforce,” said Ciocoiu.

501 2,369 “The automotive industry has a future here and there are new projects in the 476 5,333 pipeline for automotive producers and 378 3,782 parts (e.n. makers) coming to Romania.”

375 4,088 In an effort to attract further invest353 8,518 ments, Romania has rolled out two new 336 1,914 state aid schemes that are running 226 2,434 through to 2020. The first one, approved through government decision 197 3,797 332/2014, has a budget of EUR 600 mil187 3,804 lion. To be eligible, investments must 184 1,787 generate a minimum of 10 jobs within 3212 34,862 three years of completion. A second

Top 10 car parts makers in Romania Company

EUR 4.7

scheme, brought into force through government decision 807/2014, has the same budget with eligible projects required to include investments in tangible and intangible assets of at least EUR 10 million.

Overcrowded west Most of the international suppliers of parts to carmakers have built plants in central and western Romania, in a bid to circumvent the country’s poor road infrastructure. “Western Romania is the most attractive due to its proximity to pan-European corridors, and since last year we have seen the establishment of many producers. There are companies buying plants,” said Cristina Pop, head of the industrial agency at real estate consultancy JLL. However, firms have to fight for a shrinking pool of specialists According to Stroe of ACAROM, the automotive sector in Romania has created 203,600 direct jobs. “We are advising investors that if they have over 300 employees not to target Timisoara as a city,” said Cristin Cistelecan, head of the promoting and investment development department at ADR Vest, Automotive Cluster. There are 32 suppliers of parts and services for the automotive sector in Timis County, including German Continental and Siemens.

Real estate investors are also looking to build customized spaces. Dana Bordei, head of the industrial department at real estate consultancy CBRE, said 1.5 million sqm of space is being used by Tier 1 and 2 automotive producers. Only 10 percent of the surface is owned by real estate investors offering tailored buildings for producers. Bordei said that automotive investors seeking to hire more than 600-700 people are looking for underdeveloped areas, both from an industrial and logistics perspective. ovidiu.posirca@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT 27

Local energy sector’s investment future at crossroads Romania is currently analyzing new financing mechanisms involving the state for constructing large infrastructure projects worth several billion euros, but the lack of predictability and a clear development strategy is denting the country’s attractiveness to investors. This is visible in the renewable sector, which has attracted over EUR 6 billion in direct investments over the recent period, with some smaller investors risking bankruptcies and bigger ones considering strategic exits, say experts.

Conventional energy needs creative financing

ment of old electricity generation capacities with more efficient ones. The problem is that investors and financiers are looking at national governments to step in and take over some of the business risks.

“We at a point of inflexion: I think that if Romania plays its cards right we can start big projects that can boost economic and industrial development,” said Daniel Lulache, CEO of Nuclearelectrica, the state-owned nuclear energy producer.

The company has two nuclear reactors in operation at Cernavoda, covering roughly 20 percent of the country’s annual electricity consumption. There are plans to build another two reactors, and Nuclearelectrica will soon start negotiating the project with the Chinese General Nuclear Power Corporation, which was selected as investor.

Building the two reactors will require investment of around EUR 6.5 billion and could take as long as a decade.

Lulache suggested the contract for difference as a mechanism that could be used to guarantee investors a stable return. This kind of contract will be used for the construction of a new nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point, in the UK. The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, recently vetted this mechanism.

Such contracts include a guaranteed (strike) price for the plant’s electricity output. If the wholesale prices go over the limit, payments from the generator will go to consumers. If they fall below the strike price, the generator will receive a top-up payment. British consumers will not have to pay for anything until the plant becomes operational.

Romanian authorities have engaged Chinese companies to develop other key energy projects such as the Tarnita Lapustesti hydro-pumped storage plant, which would cost over EUR 1.2 billion, and the modernization of worn out electricity generators.

Insinga of Intensa Sanpaolo pointed out that Romania is not the only country looking to attract investors in the energy sector, underlining the fact that investors will come only where there is a predictable system and clear regulations.

One of the biggest challenges for Romania and the rest of the EU is the replace-

ovidiu.posirca@business-review.ro

∫ OVIDIU POSIRCA Uncertain revenues for renewable sector

Photo: Mihai Constantineanu

L to R: Paolo Insinga of Intesa Sanpaolo, Lucian Ghidarcia of ESPE Energia, and Silvia Vlasceanu of ACUE

Photo: Mihai Constantineanu

Speaking at the Foreign Investors Summit, organized by Business Review last month, Valeriu Binig, partner in advisory services at professional services firm EY Romania, commented that the country is witnessing a collapse in renewable investments following the change in legislation. Aside from the deferment of some green certificates for producers through to 2017, the authorities are also looking to exempt big industrial consumers from acquiring them in a bid to help them remain competitive.

“In the renewable energy sector we are at a point of inflexion because we need to find a balance between investors’ interests and consumers’ expectations,” said Binig. Romania is not the only country in which the incentives have been reduced, but players are concerned by the lack of any clear government policy that would secure their revenues on the long term.

Some of them have partially financed projects using bank loans and the rescheduling of debt repayments for longer periods will further increase their costs.

Players say the boom in renewable investments is pretty much over and that new investments will come from experienced companies.

“It is important that from now on, whoever invests in this sector will be a specialized firm in the energy market, because up to now there have been a lot of investments and people without experience. From our vantage point, looking at the current legal framework, the boom can’t continue,” said Lucian Ghidarcia, CFO at ESPE Energia, the local subsidiary of Italian energy group ESPE. The company has already put EUR 30 million into five small-hydro plants located in Maramures County.

The CFO said that ESPE is planning to invest another EUR 40 million in more hydro projects, but the stability of the legal framework is crucial.

He commented that if there were certainty that green certificates could be sold, then investments could be done, suggesting projects could be profitable

L to R: Daniela Lulache of Nuclearelectrica, Ioana Anca Gheorghiade of BCR, and Hamza Karimov of Socar Romania on the longer term.

The company has an ongoing bilateral contract to sell green certificates that will run through to the end of 2015.

The sale of green certificates generates the bulk of revenues for producers, which also sell their output on the energy market OPCOM. “Renewable has slowed down remarkably because there was overinvestment, excess capacities and a lot of incentives. I think there are new areas that can be evaluated (…) such as biomass and energy efficiency,” said Paolo

Insinga, global head of power & utilities in the corporate investment banking division at Italian lender Intesa Sanpaolo.

Silvia Vlasceanu, general manager of the Association of Energy Utility Companies (ACUE), said that biomass has huge potential to generate heating. At present, most of the district heating in Romania relies on worn out plants.

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

28 FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT

Agriculture remains attractive despite unresolved issues and new challenges Romania’s rural development program for the period 2014-2020 and the investment opportunities it brings, financing for farmers and price volatility in the sector were among the main issues discussed during the agriculture session of the Foreign Investors Summit (FIS), organized by Business Review. ∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN Despite several deep-rooted issues, Romania’s agricultural potential is recognized by everyone. As a result, for several years now the sector has been, and continues to be, cited among those that provide the most attractive investment opportunities in the country, agreed panelists present at the event.

There is, however, indisputably room for progress. For example, the average debt per farmer in Romania was only EUR 1,300 in 2013 compared to EUR 600,000 in the Netherlands, said Robert Rekkers, CEO of Agricover Credit IFN. Moreover, some 66 percent of the loans taken out by local farmers are to cover working capital needs and only 34 percent are for investments.

Reducing VAT and facilitating farmers’ access to know-how are just two of the measures that would help them develop, added Camelia Sucu, local entrepreneur and owner of wholesaler Piata de Gros. Romania also needs to look beyond the existing favorable context and take into consideration challenges such as price volatility. Corn prices have dropped by two and a half times over the past two years and had Romanian farmers not been able to compensate for this through higher output, the consequences would have been dire, said Cosmin Chioreanu, country leader for Romania, Bulgaria and Republic of Moldova at Monsanto.

How Romania’s agriculture will develop over the coming years depends in large part on the way the authorities choose to spend the EU funds the country was allocated for the period 2014-2020. George Turtoi, secretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR), was present during the event to talk about the main developments in this area.

Romania’s NPRD to be approved by yearend, says MADR state secretary Romania will be among the first countries in the EU to have its rural development program for the period 2014-2020 approved by the European Commission (EC) and launch a call for projects, he told participants.

“Romania has sent the National Program for Rural Development

The MADR wants to reduce the number of small farms by 2020

(NPRD) 2014-2020 to Brussels and we have received the EC’s official observations on the document. On October 22 we will begin negotiations and we will try to maintain our position with regard to the ministry’s strategy. We hope that by yearend the program will be approved and starting January, February we will launch a call for projects under NPRD 2014-2020,”said the state secretary.

Increasing agricultural production through higher productivity and investments in the production of valueadded goods are the main two objectives the Romanian authorities had in mind in drafting the NPRD for 2014-2020, added Turtoi.

Regarding negotiations with the EC, he said that the objections raised so far are not substantive and the proposed NPRD should not suffer significant changes before the end of the negotiation process. One of the EC’s main observations is that too much was allocated to investments in farms and too little left for environment measures, explained Turtoi, adding that during the negotiations Romania will try to maintain the initial ratio.

The EC also recommended that the country reduce the funds allocated to local actions groups under the LEADER measure and expressed concern over the fact that for investments in farms EU funding can reach 90 percent of a project’s value, which is considered too much.

Romania’s NPRD for 2014-2020 regulates how local farmers can gain access to the EUR 9.85 billion available for investment projects for the period. Although the program has not yet been approved by the EC, in May the MADR launched the first call for projects under the new NPRD and farmers could apply through Measure 121 – the modernization of farms, under which EUR 150 million is available.

Addressing land fragmentation One of the local farming sector’s deep-rooted issues still in need of a solution is the pronounced fragmentation of farmland. Solving this may help tackle numerous other problems such as the notoriously low productivity, but so far the authorities have

Lending activity in the agricultural sector in 2013 (Romania vs. the Netherlands) Romania

Netherlands

Average debt per farmer

EUR 1,300

EUR 600,000

Total loans

EUR 3.5 bln

EUR 40 bln

Source: Agricover Credit IFN

made little progress.

“The hardest thing to change in Romania is people’s mentality,” said the MADR representative. Nevertheless, he added, the ministry has launched several measures trying to build on the limited progress already made by using the example of farmers’ cooperatives and groups from Transylvania.

Additional measures have been proposed to help speed things up. The MADR’s target is to have the land owned by small farmers – meaning the 50 percent of Romania’s farmland which is today divided between 97 percent of the country’s farmers – consolidated into “clusters of medium-sized cooperatives and farmers’ groups”. In the case of field crops, a medium-sized cluster would mean an area of between 30 ha and 250 ha, said Turtoi.

To meet this target the ministry wants to start by informing farmers about the importance of cooperatives and farmers’ groups, starting with the new NPRD, given that part of the subsidies they will be receiving through to 2020 will be conditioned by this.

Farmers need to understand that if they do not join such groups, the subsidy they receive will not be enough for them to develop their activity and make investments but will only enable them to survive, went on Turtoi.

The ministry wants to use the same network to inform farmers about mutual funds and to convince them to set up chambers of agriculture organized as NGOs in the areas where they have not already done so.

Another measure that the MADR is working on along with the Ministry of Finance is coming up with a fiscal exemption that would apply to all transactions inside a cooperative.

This would mean that all the inputs bought by a member from the cooperative would be tax free as would the outputs bought from a member to be later sold through the cooperative, explained the ministry representative.

“I think this would greatly encourage farmers to come together,” he said.

Overall, should the ministry reach its target of having small farmers group into clusters by 2020, Romania “would reach a completely different productivity level and the local market would look totally different,” he concluded. simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT 29

Romania pins hopes on new public procurement regulations to develop local infrastructure With the Ministry of Transport aiming to put EUR 40 billion into developing the country's infrastructure through to 2030, experts say the authorities should quickly adopt the new EU directives on public procurement so as to speed up development and get better quality projects. ∫ OVIDIU POSIRCA Master Plan is a good start…

total infrastructure spending for infrastructure included in the Transport Master Plan

L to R: Ciprian Gorita of KPMG, Dragos Titea of the Ministry of Transport, Ricardo Dutto of Intesa Sanpaolo and Loredana Van de Waart of Gruia Dufaut

Photo: Mihai Constantineanu

EUR 40 bln

Photo: Mihai Constantineanu

Romania has an ambitious agenda when it comes to infrastructure, judging by the recently published Master Plan in the transport sector. The document, which is key to securing EU funding in the transport sector, includes in the road sector the construction of 656 km of motorway and around 2,226 km of express roads.

A final version of the Master Plan, which was drawn up by US engineering services firm AECOM, will be finalized this year to include proposals made during the public consultation process. Next year the authorities will need to draw up the actual implementation program for the projects.

Although all the projects look good on paper, the main challenge will be to finance their construction.

Stefan Roseanu, market research analyst at Club Feroviar, a consultancy working as a communication platform in the transport field, pointed out during the Foreign Investors Summit (FIS) organized by Business Review last month that the rail and road projects in the Master Plan are worth EUR 35 billion.

“Considering that it is estimated we will spend roughly EUR 6 billion on the two transport nodes, we can’t work out how to complete all projects that have to be completed from 2021 to 2030 under EU legislation and are worth EUR 30 billion,” said Roseanu.

The country will have at its disposal EUR 9.4 billion of EU money in the financial programming period 2014-2020, in the operational program for large infrastructure (POIM).

However, aside from transport projects, it will also be used to back investments in energy and environmental protection.

Gheorghe Racaru, CEO of Romanian low-cost carrier Blue Air, commented that the “tendency towards optimism and overvaluation” of some of the air infrastructure investments

EU directives are key to progress in Romania’s infrastructure, attendees heard

in the Master Plan should be reduced.

However, analysts and transport executives say the Master Plan is a good start, and projects will start to be rolled out if public authorities stick to the infrastructure program.

… but streamlining of public procurement regulation is needed Experts say that one of the key issues hindering the development of infrastructure in Romania is the public procurement legislation, mainly the tendency of public contracting authorities to opt for the lowest cost criteria in tenders.

“It is eight months since a new EU directive was enforced that does not

oblige contracting authorities to accept the lowest cost, but on the contrary recommends the elimination of this criteria,” said Valentin Stoica, general manager of Search Corporation, an infrastructure consultancy.

He added that the most economically advantageous tender (MEAT) would be a better fit for the construction of new infrastructure.

According to Loredana van de Waart, partner at Gruia Dufaut Law Office, the MEAT criterion also exists today, but has generated a lot of contestations from bidders because there were a lot of fixed tender books.

Last winter, the European Commission revised the two public procurement directives on procurement

in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors and for public works, supply and services contracts.

A new directive on concession contracts was also approved.

All EU member states have until April 2016 to transpose the new rules into national legislation, except for the e-procurement mechanism where the deadline is September 2018.

“The new EU directives bring more efficiency and this efficiency is established in the MEAT criterion. It gives priority to return, meaning that when this offer is established it needs to take into account the return of investment criteria, and certain mandatory requirements on quality, environment, innovation,” said van de Waart.

“The EU has realized that focusing solely on the lowest cost will not lead to development on the long term and includes the criterion of the life cost cycle. Even in the MEAT offer you should refer to the price because it is the most objective criterion; it would be very useful to take into account everything, not just the price per km, but its maintenance, costs, duration,” she added.

The national road and motorway company CNADNR has used the MEAT criterion for the Deva-Orastie motorway and for other tenders in the fourth corridor of the Pan-European transport network.

Harnessing Romania’s transit potential Roseanu of Club Feroviar commented that Romania can play a strategic role as a transit market in the transportation sector.

“The Constanta port is a gateway to Europe that is important both from a road and rail perspective,” said Roseanu.

He added that the country needs to make Romanian ports capable of providing for the countries with a higher purchasing power in “From the point of view of logistics and the evolution of geopolitics, Romania is in the extended space of the Black Sea, meaning that there are 27 countries with a common interest in developing rail projects,” said Roseanu. He added that the opportunity for Romanian lies in the development of multimodal transport platforms and land terminals for freight. ovidiu.posirca@business-review.ro

30 FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

Local real estate to cash in on region’s geopolitical turmoil The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has made Romania a more attractive destination to investors, said property market pundits during the real estate session of the Foreign Investors Summit (FIS), organized by Business Review. However, despite a positive performance overall this year, they are only “cautiously optimistic” about future growth. ∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN “In terms of risk, investors’ perception of Romania has become more positive.

This is partially because other countries in the region are perceived as having bigger problems,” said Gijs Klomp, the managing director of JLL Romania. Investments that were initially meant for Russia or Ukraine are now being redirected to other markets that offer a similar risk/return profile, he noted. Moreover, at present even Hungary is perceived as having a higher risk than Romania, Klomp went on.

Add to this the fact that markets such as Poland and the Czech Republic are becoming “very expensive”, significantly reducing their return potential, and Romania is expected to cash in on the current regional situation, he predicted. “So we will start to see liquidity in the market, and that there are new investors looking at this market,” said Klomp, adding that this should be further boosted by investors’ “herd behavior”.

There is still plenty of room for growth on all real estate sectors, argued panelists, although the general tone remained one Romania is interesting to investors of cautious optimism today mainly because of what is going on in the region and not so much on its own merits, said Razvan Iorgu, “The yield gap between the office and ing firms and the trend is projected to areas of interest for tenants, with consolidations and relocation taking managing director of CBRE Romania. industrial sectors in Romania and the remain upward.

Moreover, even though Bucharest place mostly in the same sectors for “Real estate is no longer only about gap between local industrial yields real estate,” he told participants, and and those in other countries such as continues to snap up the lion’s big players, said Iorgu. Rents too are most of what is going on in the Cen- Poland will continue to drive up in- share of new companies entering the expected to remain stable.

More important than the evolution market and new office developments, tral and Eastern Europe (CEE) region vestments,” predicted Iorgu.

There is still plenty of room other regional cities are gaining of rents is that of the construction is related to Russia.

Overall, Romania has seen more for growth on all real estate sectors, ground. For example, Cluj-Napoca, market, which would impact real estate transactions so far this year. argued panelists, although the the second most dynamic office developers’ profitability should According to previous data from general tone remained one of cau- market after the capital, will see its it pick up, said Marcin Lapinski, CBRE, the local market reported a 215 tious optimism. Office in particular stock of modern office space president of Skanska Property. But percent hike in real estate transaction has had a dynamic evolution over the grow by half again this year and right now the market is “doing so-so” volumes between January and Sep- past year and factors such as lower the next to a total of more than she added.

Skanska Property delivered the tember this year to nearly EUR 700 costs than the main CEE markets, a 150,000 sqm.

Back in Bucharest, the first half of first building of the Green Court million. This was the highest level in skilled labor force and more recently office project in the EU, but the country has remained the conflict in the region should con- the year saw a total take-up of Bucharest less attractive than Russia, Poland tinue to attract BPOs and IT compa- 128,500 sqm, out of which net October. “We came to Romania take-up represented approximately because we see potential here, but and the Czech Republic, according to nies to Romania.

“If we look at the top 100 BPOs 55,000 sqm, according to a Colliers we are patient. We want to develop a CBRE. By comparison, in the first nine worldwide, we see that only 30 per- International Romania report. This stable local business and we months of last year, the total volume cent have operations in CEE, which was up by 40 percent against the think about Romania on the long term. of real estate transactions on all seg- means there is still a lot of potential,” same period of 2013 and even sur- We started cautiously in Bucharest ments (offices, retail and industrial) stressed Georgiana Andrei, director of passed the peaks reported in the cor- and maybe sooner or later we will totaled EUR 222 million, according to the office & retail agency at Colliers responding periods of 2007 (115,000 expand to regional cities as we International Romania. Indeed, so far sqm) and 2008 (125,000 sqm) for the did elsewhere. But we are cautious,” CBRE. The industrial field in particular this year more than half of the de- first time, according to the same he concluded. has seen a surge in interest, driven mand for office space has come from source.

There were no shifts between simona.bazavan@business-review.ro mostly by the automotive industry. IT, telecom companies and outsourc-

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

FOREIGN INVESTORS SUMMIT 31

IT human resources top agenda of next local IT clusters’ meeting The next meeting of IT clusters across Romania, to take place in Brasov this month, will focus on the pool of IT staff, said Alexandru Tulai, president of the Cluj IT Cluster, during the BR Foreign Investors Summit (FIS). The first gathering took place in September in Cluj. ∫ OTILIA HARAGA

The IT panel at the FIS agreed that Romanian IT is a force to be reckoned with

Courtesy of Cluj IT Cluster

“IT is one of the most productive industries in Romania and it is already common knowledge that last year, exports of IT products totaled approximately EUR 1.4 billion, exceeding even tourism services. Given the impact of this industry on the country’s economy, the social climate but also other services and industries, IT companies along with universities, public authorities and catalyst organizations in Cluj-Napoca, and later other cities, have formed cluster-type entities, whose main target was to invigorate the regional and national economy,” Tulai told BR. Currently, there are IT clusters in Cluj-Napoca, Iasi, Brasov, Timisoara and Miercurea Ciuc. All of them were invited to a first meeting on September 11. “The target of this series of meetings, which started in Cluj-Napoca, is to identify together means of collaboration for strategic national and regional projects and to develop concerted actions to consolidate the public-private partnership,” said Tulai.

The participants were the Innovative Regional Cluster EURONEST IT&C Hub from Iasi, the cluster for Innovation and Technology in Brasov and the IT Plus Cluster in Miercurea Ciuc.

During the first meeting, the clusters discussed about financing mechanisms for the IT industry and all agreed that closer relations with banks are needed.

The clusters should be able to associate in order to attract venture capital to support entrepreneurial and startup ventures.

Also under discussion was the joint lobby to support some legislative projects in the IT industry.

A new meeting will be organized in Brasov in which all clusters in the country will participate, said Tulai.

“Since human resources is one of the most frequently cited problems facing the IT industry, it was agreed that the agenda of the next meeting will be centered on this, under the generic topic ‘Human Resources in IT and the Way to Use Them’,” said the president.

He went on, “We believe that in order to encourage the IT industry’s orientation towards generating innovative products with high added value, the public-private partnership law must be adjusted to allow common investments into research, development and innova-

“In order to encourage the IT industry’s orientation towards generating innovative products with high added value, the public-private partnership law must be adjusted” Alexandru Tulai, president Cluj IT Cluster

“IT is one of the most productive industries in Romania and it is already common knowledge that last year, exports of IT products totaled approximately EUR 1.4 billion, exceeding even tourism services.” Alexandru Tulai, president, Cluj IT Cluster tion activities. What is also needed is an update in the way state aid is granted to increase the number of jobs that takes into account the local industry. Other legal proposals will also be discussed during the next meetings of the IT clusters,” said Tulai.

The Cluj IT Cluster has already

begun setting the guidelines for the next two years. “I should mention here that, since last month, our organization has a new board of directors,” said Tulai.

One of the priorities is to develop IT firms’ innovation capabilities so that they can develop their own products, through specialized consultancy and

training. A second aim is to improve the quality of human resources in the IT member companies and grow the prospective headcount via various programs.

Third, to finalize the first innovative project to generate four intellectual property products, in which a collaboration and cooperation culture between members has already been put into practice.

Fourth, to place 450 students of the Babeș-Bolyai university in contact with IT companies via an internship program.

Fifth, to organize the third edition of the Cluj Innovation Days, on the topic of technological transfer from research to the market and community.

Another priority is to pursue efforts to kindle partnerships among members and take the cluster international, by developing joint projects with partners abroad (via projects such as Horizon 2020, COSME, national financing and private projects).

Last but not least, to continue efforts to bring the Cluj Innovation City project to maturity, which will allow the start of investments.

“In Europe, companies’ form of organization into clusters is subject to national policy. In our country, the context is slightly different. Given that most clusters are bottom-up initiatives, meaning they were constituted at the initiative of industry representatives and not via a program financed by the authorities, what is needed is awareness of long-term investment, motivation and cooperation between members to generate sustainable products,” said Tulai. otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

32 LINKS

Sharing is caring in coworking hubs The fall agenda is bursting with entrepreneurial events, and what better place to begin building a startup from scratch than a coworking hub, where entrepreneurs and freelancers can interact with likeminded individuals.

Lately, such venues have gained in popularity within these communities, popping up not only in Bucharest but also in other major metropolises. ∫ OTILIA HARAGA

Bucharest stories As the capital city and an epicenter of entrepreneurial effervescence, Bucharest boasts several such venues.

BR talked to some of their owners.

Impact Hub Bucharest started in 2010, when its co-founders set up an NGO called roPot as a foundation for a community of social innovators.

“After a series of events and meetings with different stakeholders, it became clear that this community would need its own space to meet, work and connect and ultimately grow,” Oana Paun, managing director at Impact Hub Bucharest, tells BR. The prototype for the concept and the idea was tested in 2011, when a small venue was rented in downtown

IMPACT HUB Impact Hub Bucharest monthly memberships: l EUR 15 membership l EUR 35 for 25 hours l EUR 50 for 50 hours l EUR 75 for 100 hours of coworking l EUR 120 for unlimited hours of coworking

* Membership includes access to events organized by Impact Hub Bucharest, special discounts for workshops and an account on the Impact Hub global network.

Photo: Impact Hub

“In other countries, these spaces are first picks for entrepreneurs starting out. It’s where they find what they need, learn from other entrepreneurs, interact with potential investors who participate in networking events and find mentors and advisers for their businesses,” Peter Barta, CEO of the Post-Privatizare Foundation, tells BR. In both the United States and Europe, such spaces work very well, he adds. “Entrepreneurs write their ideas on a specially painted wall that others look at and write feedback on. Sadly, there is secrecy in Romania among entrepreneurs and a fear of sharing information. If you do not take advantage of such a space then you are not benefiting. They are not useful in terms of lower costs but in terms of engaging with other entrepreneurial teams,” explains Barta.

Coworking hubs kindle entrepreneurial spirit and are often the cradle of alliances and ventures in the startup community

Bucharest.

“One year later, the concept and the functionalities were clear and there were already people interested in the next phase of development – a real and large-scale space for young entrepreneurs, NGOs, freelancers and other stakeholders,” said Paun.

Impact Hub is an international chain with more than 30 spaces opened on five continents.

By spring 2012, the perfect location was pinpointed at Unirii Square, which was close to the vibrant city center and easily accessible in terms of local transportation.

“Setting up 600 sqm on two floors was not easy, but we teamed up with young architect Dragos Scurtulescu and some of the future members and users of the space in co-creating the functionality of different areas. In this way we were able to come up with unique concepts like the conference call booths, a large kitchen area which soon became the focal point of natural interactions and the lounge area, which is now recognized as one of the landmarks in the space,” says Paun.

The creation took place in two stages. After the first opening, in June 2012, the space could host more than 50 work stations. During the second stage, in October 2012, the second floor, which can accommodate events involving up to 130 participants, was inaugurated.

Impact Hub Bucharest now has 200 members, with diverse backgrounds in recycling, food, IT, marketing, HR, education and many other fields.

“Coworking spaces have gained popularity in recent years and have continuously expanded from the West (where the concept was born) to the East. In other European cities (especially those with a strong startup ecosystem), most early stage startups choose to begin their activity from a hub and it’s the common thing to do when they decide to leave home and move their team into an office. And the good part is that Romania is getting there, too, and we’re seeing lots of examples in this respect,” Daniel Dragomir, co-founder & CEO of TechHub Bucharest, tells BR. He added that the idea to start TechHub arose when the previous hub at which the How to Web team was working was closed and Bogdan Iordache, founder of How to Web, wrote a blog post asking the community whether it needed a new coworking space.

“We were overwhelmed by the positive feedback so we decided to open up a new coworking space for the Romanian tech community. The next steps were to identify the perfect location and to arrange it in order to fit the requirements of our future members,” says Dragomir.

TechHub officially opened its doors on April 15, 2013. “We didn’t hire a de-

TECH HUB l EUR 120/month for resident

members, including 24/7 access to TechHub and their own office

l EUR 80/month for coworking

members, including access to the coworking space Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm

* Membership includes free access to all the events organized

by Tech Hub as well as preferential access to events organized by the Romanian tech community. signer to arrange the space; I personally handled the design, with the support of an architect (…). The reason for this is that we wanted the space to be designed in the spirit of the tech community in order to make sure our members would feel comfortable here,” he tells BR. Today, the 420 sqm space of TechHub is divided into 55 permanent offices for resident members, 60 coworking spaces, two meeting rooms and a space for events that can accommodate up to 120 participants.

More than 80 people work from TechHub daily, and members also

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

ClujHUB l Access fees start from EUR 11

for a daily pass

l Subscriptions start at EUR 60

for 50 hours

l EUR 150 for full-time members

*Includes unlimited space access and a series of benefits.

enjoy access to the other TechHub locations around the world, according to Dragomir.

Cluj and Iasi are catching the bug Judging from interviews with these entrepreneurs, these spaces are feeding into an existing need on the market.

This is true not only for Bucharest, but also for other entrepreneurial cities.

For instance, in Cluj, another entrepreneurial center, the idea to create a hub emerged after the TEDxCluj conferences and from the need of innovative and entrepreneurial people to develop a community around their avant-garde ideas, Cristian Dascalu, the entrepreneur behind the project, tells BR.

LINKS 33 Dascalu is working with his team and the Cluj communities to develop the project.

ClujHUB is located centrally in a 400 sqm villa and comprises a summer garden of approximately 150 sqm.

The space can be split into five meeting areas with a capacity of between 6 and 75 people, and/or individual work spaces for approximately 70 people.

The first section of ClujHUB was inaugurated in November 2012.

“We invested nearly EUR 400,000, since we chose to develop the project in a purchased building,” Dascalu tells BR. ClujHUB currently has 50 members.

“We target creative freelancers, consultants and early-stage startups, with up to five full-time members,” says the founder.

Eastern Romania is represented on the coworking scene with venues such as The Grape – Business Hub in Iasi, where a small group of entrepreneurs joined forces to get it started.

“We are five co-founders – Costina Iurascu, Tudor Gandu, Bogdan Irimia, Cezar Cardon and Andreea Zaharescu.

We are all AIESEC Iasi alumni, which is where we met for the first time. And although we are from different generations and each have our own path in our profession, we share a motivation to make this coworking space for young entrepreneurs and freelancers in Iasi from various fields,” Iurascu

ing Partner to Elance, which is extells BR. At the time of writing, The Grape pected to bring more freelancers to gathers entrepreneurs and freelancers the hub. There are also various groups in IT, training, recruitment, marketing meeting up weekly such as the community of iOS-NSAgora developers. and social entrepreneurship.

The hub is strengthening bonds “Every week, over 50 entrepreneurs, with the outside world to provide experts in various fields and freelancers, come to us,” says Iurascu. more openness for its members.

The design was handled by the coThis year, The Grape has signed a partnership with a similar innovation founders with occasional help from a hub in Oslo which has developed a young female painter.

“We opened it on January 6. I regreat deal since it launched more than three years ago. “With this partner- member it was just before New Year’s ship, the members of The Grape, Eve and we were still painting the when on a working visit to Oslo, can walls and making arrangements,” she work absolutely free of charge at Mesh says. “To open this space, we needed Norway for up to two weeks. This is approximately EUR 4,000 at first. We not an ordinary hub: they have mem- can talk next year about the annual inbers such as LinkedIn Norway and vestments made during the first year of activity. It takes a lot of joint effort partners such as Microsoft,” she says.

The Grape is also Official Cowork- to support such a project.”

The shared workspace covers 170 sqm and is located centrally, with a capacity of 15 seats for full-time members. Iurascu adds that a larger space may be needed to cover the needs of l RON 150-400/month, unlimited collaborators. subscription, 9am to 9pm “I can think of a recent example: one business had three people half a l Happy Hour subscription RON year ago and when they left us last month, there were already five em250, 9am to noon. ployees and they planned to hire more next year. You can find them in the United Business Center in Palas; they *Membership includes participaare Google partners,” says Iurascu. tion in events organized by The

The Grape

Grape, about four per month.

otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

34 HUMAN RESOURCES

WHO’S NEWS BR welcomes information for Who’s News. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. Get in touch at simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

Alina Angelescu

has been appointed accounting partner by TPA Horwath Romania.

She has worked for several multinational professional services and consultancy firms and has more than 15 years of professional experience in the fields of accounting, audit and advisory. Angelescu joined TPA Horwath Romania in 2004. Her previous position was senior manager in the company’s audit practice. Together with fellow partner Claudia Stanciu-Stanciulescu she will now coordinate the company’s accounting practice, including the services of statutory accounting reporting, payroll accounting, international reporting standards (IFRS, US GAAP), accounting review, budget and forecast, cash management and other financial management products.

Angelescu is a graduate of the International Business and Economics Faculty at the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest. She is a member of the UK Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), of the Body of Expert and Licensed Accountants of Romania (CECCAR) and of the Romanian Chamber of Financial Auditors (CAFR).

Celestin Constantin

is the new general director of the Polisano European Hospital in Sibiu. A 1996 graduate of the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest, from the Faculty of Finance and Banking, he is an auditor and expert accountant. He holds a master’s degree in management, an MBA, and, since 2013, a PhD. in economic sciences. Constantin has been working in the healthcare industry since 1997 when he joined the Public Health Division of Bucharest. Between 1999 and 2003 he was the head of the budget-finances department of the Bucharest Health Insurance House.

Until 2011 he served as the financial director, administrative director and head of acquisitions for the Floreasca Emergency Hospital in Bucharest. Two years later Constantin was appointed general manager of the Sf. Pantelimon Emergency Hospital in Bucharest.

Raluca Demian

has joined the audit team of Deloitte’s Timisoara office. Before joining the company she worked in the financial department of a multinational firm. Demian is a

student of the ACCA and a CECCAR intern. She holds a master’s degree in Auditing from the Faculty of Economy and Business Administration of the West University in Timisoara and is a graduate of the Accounting Faculty of the same university. She speaks English and French.

Ion Efros

has been appointed audit manager by Deloitte Romania.

He is an experienced consultant, who has been working with the company since the start of his career in 2007. Prior to this appointment Efros worked with the Deloitte team in Chisinau and Bucharest, advising clients in areas such as manufacturing, real estate, telecommunications, energy and retail. Efros is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and a student of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). He is a graduate of the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest and holds a master’s degree in Business Administration.

He speaks English and Russian.

Tim Helsen

is the new country manager for UPS in Greece, Hungary and Romania based in Bucharest. Helsen, a 35year-old native of Belgium, will now be responsible for approximately 400 employees, as well as the operations, business development, strategy and support functions of UPS across these geographies. He takes over from Iulia Nartea, who has been named country manager for UPS Italy, based in Milan. Helsen began his UPS career in 2001 as a finance specialist at UPS Belgium. In 2009 he took on the role of south district freight forwarding and logistics finance coordinator and in 2010 he moved to Dubai where he was finance manager for the former Turkey, Middle East and Central Asia district. Helsen returned to Brussels in 2011 to serve as UPS Europe, Middle East, and Africa finance & accounting director and two years later became controller for the East Europe District.

Maria Krasilowez

has been appointed managing director of Tetra Pak South Eastern Europe, the food packaging company.

She will be responsible for coordinating the development of the company across its 14 market in South East Europe, including Croatia, Greece, Romania and Serbia. With over 22 years of experience in sales, marketing, strategy and product innovation in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa, Krasilowez joined the company in 2003 as global director for strategy & innovation. She later took on the role of sales management director for Southern Europe.

Before joining the company’s South Eastern team, she coordinated Tetra Pak Ukraine as managing director.

Before joining Tetra Pak, she worked for PwC Consulting and Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals.

Gabriela Lungu

has resigned from her role as chief creative officer at Weber Shandwick EMEA, according to the Holmes Report. She will continue with the company until the start of 2015.

The resignation comes less than two years since she joined the global PR firm in a London position as executive vice-president and EMEA consumer practice leader. Six months later she shifted to a chief creative officer role.

Lungu joined Weber Shandwick after giving up her role as managing partner and creative director of Romanian PR firm The Practice. Before founding The Practice, Lungu served as managing director of Ogilvy Public Relations Romania. The top management of The Practice is now made up of Oana Bulexa and Monica Jitariuc as co-managing directors. Stefan Iordache, co-founding partner of The Practice & COO of Leo Burnett Group Romania, acquired Lungu’s shares in the company and, it was announced at the time, was in charge of supporting the new management team.

Iasmina Ranila

has joined the audit team of Deloitte’s Timisoara office. She graduated in 2011 from the Faculty of Economy and Business Administration of the West University in

Timisoara, with a specialization in accounting. She also holds a master’s degree in accounting expertise. She speaks English, Spanish and German.

Adrian Vasiliu

has been appointed general manager of Europharm Distributie.

Prior to the appointment, the position was held for six months by Viorel Vodita, in parallel with his marketing manager job, to which he is now returning. Throughout his career, Vasiliu has held various senior management roles. After 13 years with Procter& Gamble, he was country manager for Romania and Cyprus at Diageo. Over the last four years he ran Algerian distribution company Star Brands & Star Goods. The 40-year-old graduated from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest and holds a master’s degree in Business Administration.

Hasan Ali Yardimci

is the new general manger of Arctic. He is replacing Monica Iavorschi who was appointed international marketing director of Turkish Arcelic Group, which owns the electronic appliances manufacturer. Yardimci joined the Turkish group in 2009 as director of strategic planning and business development. During his tenure Arcelic expanded on new markets in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, through greenfield investments and mergers & acquisitions.

He previously worked for companies in the strategic consultancy and retail sectors such as McKinsey & Co and Sears Holding.

Yardimci holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management within the Northwestern University in the US and also a BA in mechanical engineering from the Bogazici University in Turkey. Meanwhile, Iavorschi will handle the global marketing and operations strategy of the group.

Philanthropy

Tea houses

Premiere

OvidiuRo Halloween Ball and Hospice Casa Sperantei Annual Edelweiss Ball helped raised funds for the less privileged

As winter nears, Business Review went to town to find the best places where everything stops for tea

A new production of La Traviata marks the opening of a revamped Bucharest National Opera and its 60th anniversary

»pages 36-37

»pages 39

»pages 40-41

Lifestyle www.business-review.eu

AprilNovember, 2014, Number 2014 2

Gimme Moore

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

36 PHILANTHROPY

OvidiuRo raises EUR 267,000 to get 2,200 kids in kindergarten This year’s theme of the traditional Halloween Ball, The Magic of Film, allowed guests to dress up as their favorite movie characters. The funds raised will boost the organization’s 2015 budget for its “Every Child in Kindergarten” program, created to support under-privileged children.

Photo: Adrian Scutaru

Photo: Dorel Melinte

Serge Celibidache, founder of the Celibidache International Festival

Film director Cristian Mungiu

Leslie Hawke and Maria Gheorghiu, OvidiuRo co-founders

editor@business-review.ro

Clocking off: attendees parade their film costumes

Photo: Dorel Melinte

The program focuses on getting children from disadvantaged homes into kindergarten, starting at age three, in order to provide them with the opportunity to go to school well prepared and subsequently integrate into society as active members.

Around 500 people attended the ball, despite the unexpected first snow that fell over Bucharest that night. The theme was The Magic of Film and the night saw actress Bérénice Bejo and Michel Hazanavicius, director of The Artist, present film critic Irina Margareta Nistor with the Friedrich Niemann “Lifetime Achievement Award.”

The award recognizes extraordinary individual contributions. Bejo and Hazanavicius were in town to take part in the Les Films de Cannes à Bucarest festival, at the invitation of director Cristian Mungiu.

Education minister Remus Pricopie attended the event and praised

the “Every Child in Kindergarten” program as a best practices model in pre-school education.

The Cluj county council received the award “The best adaptation of the Every Child in Kindergarten program”, as Cluj is the first county In the saddle: Steven van Groningen, CEO of Raiffeisen Bank in the country to also get financially involved in implementing this program.

The award was presented by Angel Tilvar, president of the Commission for European Affairs in the Deputies Chamber.

The award for “Longest running sponsorship” went to KMG International for having supported the activities of OvidiuRo for ten years. Local company Dedeman received the award for “The Newest Major Investor.”

The most generous donors of the evening were Steven van Groningen, CEO of Raiffeisen Bank, and the Celebidachi family, together with other two anonymous donors.

Photo: Adrian Scutaru

∫

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

PHILANTHROPY 37

EUR 80,000 for Hospice’s hope The 14th edition of the Edelweiss Ball at the Athenee Palace Hilton, an event that Hospice Casa Sperantei has made a tradition, helped raise EUR 80,000 for the palliative care the foundation has been providing for the terminally ill in Romania since 1992.

Princess Marina Sturdza, host Corina Caragea and Grigore Ghyka

L to R: His Excellency Paul Brummell, British Ambassador to Romania, and Graham Perolls, CMG, founder and president of Hospice of Hope Foundation

∫ More than 200 guests were present in the Athenee Palace Hilton’s Grand Ballroom for the 14th Edelweiss Ball, an annual charitable event that raises funds for the Hospice Casa Sperantei foundation that has been providing palliative care to the terminally ill in Romania, since 1992. In his opening speech, delivered almost entirely in perfect Romanian, His Excellency Paul Brummel, the British Ambassador to Romania, praised the outstanding achievements of the Hospice Casa Sperantei charity organization and of its founder and president, Graham Perolls. Perolls awarded this year’s prize to Valeria and Steven van Groningen, organizers of the annual charity marathon for the Hospice.

The total amount of money raised with the help of sponsors and the ball’s guests that participated in the silent and open auction of the evening was EUR

80,000. The money will help fund the palliative care that Hospice Casa Sperantei provides in its centers in Brasov, Fagaras, Zarnesti and Bucharest. Over 150,000 people need help in their battle against serious disease every year in Romania and only 7 percent of them benefit from palliative care.

Among the items put up for auction were designer jewelry, paintings, the opportunity to play a tennis match with Simona Halep and a gourmet dinner hosted by Princess Marina Sturdza and Athenee Palace Hilton, as well as the cost of a one-day physiotherapy treatment.

Perolls this year received a CMG award from the Duke of Cambridge at an investiture at Buckingham Palace.

He was made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in the New Year’s Honours List, an order of chivalry reserved for those who render extraordinary service in a foreign country. editorial@business-review.ro

Brio Sonores, this year’s winners of Romanians Have Talent, were part of the evening’s program

More than 200 guests in the Athenee Palace Hilton’s Grand Ballroom responded to Princess Marina Sturdza’s speech with a standing ovation

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

38 INTERVIEW

Commitment as a way of living Pianist Dario Ntaca sees the instrument he plays as an extension of his body and as always vocally inspired. The Argentine says art has a lot to do with commitment, which is one of the keys to a successful musical career, and a way to counteract the sometimes superficial approach of contemporary society. Ntaca was in Bucharest in October to give a piano recital as well as a master class at the Bucharest Conservatory. ∫ SIMONA FODOR How did you start playing the piano?

How much did it have to do with your family’s musical background?

My father was a teacher at Teatro Colón, which is like the Romanian Athenaeum but it’s an opera house, a very famous theater around the world.

So since I was a child I was always around musicians and singers. Although I don’t sing, I think the influence that Teatro Colón had on my life was very important because yesterday [e.n. the day of the concert Ntaca gave in Bucharest] one person came to the dressing room and told me that my piano sings a lot. That is always a very nice compliment for me to hear because my main goal in music, and also when I teach, is to help people understand that an instrument is an extension of your voice the same way a fork is an extension of your hand and any utensils we use in life are an extension of our bodies. I have always felt that the instrument is an extension of the voice. Whatever instrument a musician would play, a violin, piano or flute, there is always something that is vocal, that is vocally inspired.

So I consider my childhood background extremely important in how I approach the piano.

Was playing the piano always what you wanted to do?

Yes. I also wanted to conduct but I knew I had to wait, and when I teach a conducting seminar I always advise young conductors to deepen their relationship with an instrument, whatever their instrument is, before they become conductors. Because piano has always been my reality and my life, conducting is also an extension – speaking of extensions – of my piano.

My goal is to play the piano always, even if I’m active as a conductor.

Can you identify the landmark moment in your career?

I think performing Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto in the city where he premiered it, as it had been my dream for three years since I had set foot in New York.

I moved to New York when I was 19 and I said this is the city where [Sergei] Rachmaninoff premiered his third piano concerto. They commissioned him to write a piano concerto to be premiered in New York and it

CV Dario Ntaca 2004 Founder of the Sinfonietta Argerich in Argentina, of which he has served as music director since its creation Ntaca has appeared as pianist and conductor with the Sinfonietta de Paris; Moravian Philharmonic in the Czech Republic; and in Bulgaria with the Burgas Symphony Orchestra, Russe Philharmonic, Varna Philharmonic and Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestras. He also toured Spain in 1994 with the Oxford Chamber Orchestra.

1990-1996 Music director of the San Luis Orchestra in Argentina He has performed solo recitals in major international centers such as Paris, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Buenos Aires and was under the direction of [Gustav] New York.

Mahler; it was an amazing night in He studied under the guidance of his 1910. And the very first moment I set father, Alejandro Ntaca, one of South foot in New York I was so aware of America’s leading piano pedagogues. that concerto, it kept coming into my He also studied orchestral conducting mind all the time. So I entered a com- at Juilliard School with Vincent La petition with that concerto, and I won. Selva and he is a graduate of the State I was 22. I think that was a sign that University of New York where he studthings were going well. ied under Germán Diez.

Ntaca received the 1983 Concert Would you say you have ever had to Award from the State University of sacrifice anything for your music?

New York for his performance of RachWell, your concept is correct although maninoff’s 3rd Piano Concerto. In 1985 I always remove the word sacrifice. he was awarded the silver medal at We can work on that concept and I al- the Mozart International Competition ways tell my students this. It may be in Colorado. true, I’m not arguing against the word; I’m just saying that sometimes it’s probably better to disguise it, and not to see so vividly that you’re sacrificing something. So I refer to it as maybe postponing something until after a concert. You may postpone conversations with friends; they call you on the phone and you say “I’m busy”. For some people it is a sacrifice.

I would like to use the concept of postponing because you end up doing it somehow at a different time. And yes, it involves choice.

What are your concert or recording plans for the Sinfonietta Argerich?

We have done a lot in the past. Sinfonietta Argerich, based in Argentina, did not tour abroad with Martha. It was an orchestra created to perform throughout Argentina, in provinces where there’s no orchestra and where Martha wanted to play. Martha hasn’t been too active in Argentina in the

last year. So we don’t have specific plans.

Can you single out one biggest threat to classical music today?

Everything is under threat. Everything that is intense requires passion and what I call “Renaissance commitment”. Renaissance commitment is a way of living: simply to not conceive of your life without art, without sacrifice if you want. And the threat is – if we want to use the word sacrifice, or choice – the threat is that not only is the yoghurt light, everything is light.

If it is only the yoghurt, that is fine, but people want everything to be light.

When human beings have a tendency to become light in everything, to me that is the only threat. And of course classical music cannot be light because it is very hard to perform, it requires practice, certain organizational

capacities – I’m already talking here about orchestras – and the threat lies in the lack of commitment.

I don’t think it is irreversible; I think it is possible with some kind of new Enlightenment. There have been many Enlightenment periods in history and it certainly doesn’t look like that because we have a lot of information and the internet. [...]

All the youth do all day is chat.

They’re all together having coffee but they’re chatting to different people at the same time so they are not talking to each other. And that has to do with art, because it has to do with commitment. If you don’t commit to people, you won’t commit to art. If you don’t commit to normal communication, you won’t commit to a more profound communication.

What advice do you have for a young musician starting out now?

First of all they have to know that musicians have always been people who are a little strange in society. Today they’re even stranger. So, we have to face the fact of long hours of practice and a certain tendency towards isolation, which no teenager wants, but it is required for the excellence that we pursue.

To summarize, I think there’s a sense of commitment that translates into power of devotion and if you begin very early, you have to make a decision. It’s not only the individual – by the time the person interested in music has the power to make a decision it is probably too late.

So the advice is first to the parents, if they’re going to support a talented child. First you have to try to figure out if your child is very talented, to push him or her gently away from distractions so that at 13,14,15, he or she understands the difference between commitment and distraction, and tries to avoid distraction and focus on practice. To play a certain instrument requires a certain muscular development and this has to happen while you’re still developing. If you make up your mind at 18 or 19 it is probably too late. If the relationship between your muscles and the nervous system related to the hands, or different limbs, is not correctly developed before a certain age, it is probably too late. So early commitment is necessary, otherwise nothing can happen. simona.fodor@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

AFTER HOURS 39

Re-leaf: it’s tea time Despite the recent invasion of our high streets by big brand coffee houses, tea rooms have staged a comeback, often in unconventional spaces. And as winter nears, a hot drink becomes ever more comforting. Business Review went downtown to find the places where everything stops for tea. ∫ DIANA PETRESCU OANA VASILIU PrioriTea PrioriTea’s big draw may be its ultra central location in the Villacrosse Passage, but we also love the chic furniture and the muffins (especially the muffins).

Address: 41 Romulus Street, 0722.756.401 Infinitea Very few places in Bucharest warrant the use of the word “enchanted” but this – located in an old noble house, close to Romniceanu Park – is one of them. Its magic can work against it: the atmosphere is so cozy and dreamy, it is not ideal for business or formal meetings.

Address:7 Dr. Grigore Romniceanu Street, 0723.175.300

Ceai la Cotroceni If you’re into alternative places, this is the teahouse for you. Located in a basement, it’s always shrouded in darkness, which can be a good thing because if you saw the old cracked walls in daylight, you may get the creeps. But there’s a reason this spot is one of the advertisers’ favorite hangouts in Bucharest. One word: inspiration.

Address: 25 Profesor Doctor Gheorghe Marinescu Blvd., 0721.669.535 Bohemia Teahouse Located near the Conservatory, the artistic streak is alive and well in this place, from the paintings on the walls to the hand-painted teacups.

Address: 1 Poiana Narciselor Street, 0727.333.631 La Vlaicu Best visited in the summer, La Vlaicu excels for its incredibly green terrace.

The interior keeps it classy and uncluttered.

All photos: ArCub

Green Tea Green Tea was one of the very first teahouses in Bucharest, established some time before they became “a thing”. The old-style home has floors decorated in different styles, Japanese, Indian and French, which makes Green Tea one eclectic teahouse.

Address: 24 Dr. Burghelea Street, 0749.090.202

Brew and me: friends catch up over a cuppa at the ArCuB tea room

Address: 47 Aurel Vlaicu Street, 0727.609.699 Caffe D’arthe A vintage salon where your tea is served in floral porcelain cups, along with a generous selection of herbs and flavors for your brew. A good spot for a cozy afternoon.

Address: 7 Popa Nan Street, 0734.662.580 Camera din fata Once upon a time, there was a world of magic and fairy tales, a world where grandparents spoiled grandchildren with homemade goodies, carefully baked in old ovens. If the description sounds familiar, you’ll feel right at home here.

Address: 21 D. I. Mendeleev Street, 021.311.1512

Merci Charity Boutique Merci Charity Boutique is the perfect place to discover handmade items or enjoy a cup of aromatic tea – and all in a good cause. Located in the Old Town, just above French Bakery, Merci is Romania’s first boutique

charity shop – a popular trend worldwide – bringing hope to the disadvantaged. Check their Facebook page: almost every night something interesting is happening there, in aid of charity.

Address: 13 Smardan Street, 1st floor, 0752.593.736 ArCuB teahouse A tiny, all-white tea room in the foyer of the ArCuB hall. Spice up your senses with different types of tea, from energy boosters to relaxing brews or blends with long-term benefits. Check them out before or after a performance.

Address: 14 Batistei Street, 0730.091.728

Pot luck: take some tea home

diana.petrescu@business-review.ro oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

40 PREMIERE

Libiamo ne’ lieti calici!

New La Traviata marks a new beginning for ONB Bucharest’s Opera House (ONB) has just emerged following an extensive facelift – and the renaissance of the iconic cultural institution is being marked by another debut: a new version of Verdi’s La Traviata. ∫ OANA VASILIU

1950s Paris, a time of luxury Some see the 1950s in Paris as the pinnacle of cultural, social, intellectual and artistic creation, a period per-

All photos: Bucharest National Opera

La Traviata was first staged in March 1853, and it is now more than 16 years since the original version premiered at the Bucharest National Opera.

“Giuseppe Verdi’s work is today the most frequently staged opera in the world, and its composer’s oeuvre also the most performed”, said Razvan Ioan Dinca, general manager of Bucharest National Opera, so a new interpretation of the libretto can be a challenge. But it is a challenge that director Paul Curran embraced, as no one had invited him to stage a new La Traviata until this February, when he agree to bring Verdi’s classic opera to the Romanian stage.

The plot is well known, telling the story of a courtesan who lived in Paris in the first half of the 18th century.

“Traviata means fuori della strada (to depart from the right path)”, adds Curran. Along with choreographer Gary McCann, he came up with an original and provocative take, transposing the action from 1700s Paris, where Verdi set his story, to the 1950s.

“The last really conservative era in the West was the 1950s, when a sex scandal involving an independent woman could be understood,” said the director. That decade also allowed the preservation of social nuances that would resonate with contemporary audiences.

Veni, Verdi, vici: Romanian guest soprano Aurelia Florian performs in the first act

fectly defined by the French with the expression “savoir vivre”. Against this backdrop, Violetta Valery represents a world of luxury, beautifully put in context by both director and choreographer. “What the 1950s allowed us to do was to make the story more modern, clearer and more relatable to the audience. People no longer feel the same social pressures from their families as they did in those times or in the times of Dumas,” McCann told Business Review. The story of La

“It is one of the most fantastic stories ever written because it’s a story about every era, every epoch; it’s a story about a sex scandal, which is hypocritical. It’s a story of hypocrisy. I don’t understand why, when everybody in the world has sex, we still have sex scandals. I don’t get that.”

Paul Curran, director

Traviata was based on the novel The Lady of the Camellias, written by Alexandre Dumas Jr, son of the iconic French writer.

Light pastel chromatic tones and luxury elements, such as costumes inspired by fashion designers Charles James and Christian Dior and plush violet embellish the performance. “It’s a story that emerges in the middle of the 18th century, and it is supposed to be lavish. People were supposed to say, ‘Wow, how can you afford to live like this?’, because the character is presented as a high-class courtesan. So we created something that is quite opulent but baroque in style,” outlined McCann. The team also put together everything for the staging from scratch, with a very talented Romanian team of designers, he noted.

“The décor is an ensemble for the protagonist’s own world. All four facades are there, thus building a kind of fragility in the way it looks because it doesn’t seem permanent or inspires strong architecture,” said the choreographer.

Negotiating taboos The story outlines the tragic fate of a controversial young Parisian beauty, originally called Marie Duplessis but renamed Violetta Valery in the libretto.

A courtesan, she is a rapacious seductress of wealthy men. “Violetta has chosen this life for herself. (…) When a woman of society has to make a choice between getting married, being a nun or being a prostitute, I think that’s quite difficult,” said the director.

The choreographer added, “The thing to remember about her is her youth.

She is a very beautiful woman who dies very young. Think of her in the most glamorous way.”

Both Romanian Aurelia Florian and Canadian Siphiwe McKenzie make impressive Violettas, from voice to costume and performance. The audience particularly liked the touch of the character using no make-up in her stricken final act.

Cold comfort The Bucharest National Opera build-

www.business-review.ro Business Review | November, 2014

PREMIERE 41 ing underwent a reconstruction process last year, but it was only this summer that work moved to the main hall. Unfortunately, the workers were not able to finish the interior facelift before rehearsals for the premiere, meaning the performers faced trying conditions, enduring industrial noise, dust and cold while the heating system was replaced.

“I knew it was going to be a challenge as director because it has been performed for 160 years and everybody knows Traviata. To stage Traviata you have to have an opinion, and mine was quite strong: just to tell the story – this human and fantastic story – in a very dramatic way,” said Curran at a press conference. “Another challenge we had was regarding the reconstruction, but it

appears this is something that happens to me, as it’s not the first production which I’ve done in an opera house where reconstruction was underway.”

McCann added, “I think every opera production has its challenges when you do it on a big scale with a lot of people and a lot of different processes. For me the challenge was to ensure the quality of the carving, so we had to look around to find the right people to provide us with that service and I’m very delighted with what they created. Up closer it looks like a film set and the quality of the finishes are really fantastic. But it’s a challenge getting to that point where you can have the right process.” oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

Over 80 individual dresses were created especially for the performance

Opera gets a facelift

Raising the curtain: new stage, six new premieres, completely refurbished space

Photo: Gary McCann

“The proof of whether Alexander Dumas’s story is still timely today is that we are doing it and there is clearly something in this story that makes the theme universal, although society changes as do tastes. But we all have fundamental human needs, we all want to be loved, we all want to have sex, we all want to succeed and to fit into society. So the cultural specifics change as history changes but human beings have the same almost basic needs.”

Gary McCann, choreographer

The Bucharest National Opera celebrated 60 years of operating in the same building at the beginning of this year, having undergone EUR 8.8 million of renovations (excluding VAT) since August 2013. According to Razvan Dinca, director of the cultural institution, works should have been completed in March 2014, but they were finally finished on October 30, for the premiere of La Traviata.

The facelift involves a new stage, with an improved, movable floor, more space for the orchestra to be heard and seen, with the stage made shorter to improve the acoustics. Air conditioning, new upholstery for the seats, another general rehearsal room and extensive improvements to the artists’ dressing rooms and rehearsal spaces were also part of the process.

The façade, too, was refurbished.

Five new premieres will be staged at the Bucharest National Opera, as follows:

l La fille mal gardee, by Ferdinand

Herold and John Lanchbery – December 13, 2014 l Falstaff, another masterpiece by

Giuseppe Verdi and directed by Graham Vick – February 19, 2015 l A ballet triptych comprised of Clas-

sical Symphony (Serghei Prokofiev, choreographer Yuri Possokhov), Pettite Mort (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, choreographer Jiří Kylián), and Marguerite and Armand (Franz Liszt, choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton) – April 25, 2015 l Manon Lescaut by Giacomo Puc-

cini and staged by director Jonathan Kent – May 23, 2015 l A new Giselle, with choreography

by Ethan Stiefel and Johan Kobborg – June 6, 2015. oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

42 FILM FESTIVAL

Cluj laughing now

3Q Horatiu Dan director of Comedy Cluj

Last month, Romania’s second city transformed itself into the national laughter capital, courtesy of the Cluj International Comedy Festival, a celebration of comic film. Festival director Horatiu Dan and programmer Bogdan Besliu looked back over this year’s festival and shared their highlights with Business Review. ∫ OANA VASILIU

Photo: Comedy Cluj

The Cluj International Comedy Festival involved 147 film projections in nine different locations, the screening of 192 movies from 38 countries across four continents and over 100 special guests who entertained the public for ten days, as well as jazz concerts, theater, dance and parties, all put together by over 200 organizers, both festival employees and volunteers.

Top tips

How difficult is it to obtain funding for such a festival?

It’s difficult, especially because of the massive cuts to companies’ marketing budgets. Unfortunately, this year’s budget is lower than the budget we had in 2013. We are happy that two of our sponsors have funded our festival from the beginning, so we can proudly say that the event has grown with their help, too, and the money received from them hasn’t been affected. These traditional partnerships give the festival stability.

But we also have support from the public sector; we received money from the National Center of Cinematography as well as local authorities, such as the City Hall and local council. oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

ticular, one of which took two awards at the festival for best film and best script, Jacky in the Women’s Kingdom, directed by Riad Sattouf, in which society is turned upside down and the rulebook goes out of the window. Italian production I Can Quit Whenever I Want (Sydney Sibilia) comes under the pure comedy label, and draws on several well placed clichés. Documentary Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon (Mike Myers), and Pride (Matthew Warchus), one of the best movies of the year, round out Besliu’s selection. Dan also praises Pride, for which the Florin Piersic Cinema was fully booked out after the festival closing gala.

The shorts selection was the most difficult, as over 800 works were submitted via the application process, while over 400 were recommended by friends of the festival. In response, Besliu instituted several criteria reducing the field to 400 short movies for this, the sixth edition, he told BR BR. “From the beginning, we excluded American box office movies because audiences already have access to this type of work. We wanted to show them other movies that aren’t so easy to discover otherwise. A few of the films presented at the festival have been released nationwide, and we included them in the program because some are extremely good, and others were recommendations from friends who didn’t get to see the respective movie at

Victor Rebengiuc received the Excellence in Career Award at Comedy Cluj

Photo: Mihaela Coste

Do you think that the Romanian movie industry is becoming more open to comedy?

I believe that Romanian cinema is beginning to return its attention to comedy.

We had the 1990s and 2000s when we produced many dramas, most inspired by communist experience. I think that trend is slowly beginning to fade and we can see again a clear diversification of themes with comedy among the genres covered by the new wave of film directors.

I personally expect to see many smart Romanian comedies, which besides humor, transmit a message, have a theme and say something.

Photo: Mihaela Coste

What does comedy mean to you?

“We wanted a diverse selection in terms It definitely means more than laughing, of genres, and the best word to describe for sure. A comic film has the ability to this year’s movie selection was diverlook at serious aspects of life in a comic sity: we had musicals, black comedy, way. So comedy is not just about humor. pure comedy, absurd comedy and black A good comedy must give more than hu- humor from absurd situations. The fesmor and we must ask some serious tival aimed to show the public that questions when we get out of the movie comedy isn’t a movie genre where you theater, and leave there with something just go to laugh, but a more complex more than the memory of a few bursts genre,” Besliu told BR. He recommends four movies in parof laughter.

Ana Maria Vortolomei took two trophies for Jacky in the Kingdom of Women

the cinema. Examples are Transylvanian garlic/Usturoi directed by Lucian Alexandrescu, Kraftidioten (Hans Petter Moland) and About Time (Richard Curtis),” said Besliu.

About last night…

One of the biggest surprises came during the closing gala, where both guests and journalists were taken aback by the inclusion of their names and inside jokes about them, as well as the festival’s “making of” video, in which many of the guests had a short appearance.

One of the most highly anticipated moments of the evening was the presentation of the Excellence in Career award, a distinction that this year was given to renowned Romanian actor Victor Rebengiuc. The previous evening, Lu-

cian Pintilie’s film Why do the bells toll, Mitica? / De ce trag clopotele, Mitica?, in which Rebengiuc plays the main character, had been shown. Asked by BR why so many viewers flocked to this particular screening – the organizers had to bring more seating to accommodate the audience – Dan answered, “The public doesn’t ignore its cultural past. It is crystal clear that we focus on the cultural present, but we don’t ignore the cultural past and this is why Pintilie’s 1981 movie starring Victor Rebengiuc was so acclaimed. The public likes this type of event, the retrospective, where Romania’s greatest actors receive these awards. This kind of thing happens every year.” oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

FILM 43

FILM REVIEW

Maps to the Stars

Romanian realities writ large on big screen ∫ OANA VASILIU

DEBBIE STOWE Director: David Cronenberg Starring: Julianne Moore, Mia Wasikowska, Robert Pattinson, John Cusack On at: Cinemateca Union, Grand Cinema Digiplex, Hollywood Multiplex Behold: Hollywood’s heart of darkness revealed in all its cynicism. Director David Cronenberg is best known for twisted psychological studies and cult horror flicks such as Crash and The Fly, but this damning Tinseltown satire turns out to be no less horrendous than getting off on traffic accidents or turning into a bluebottle.

At the center of the ghastliness is the ironically named Weiss family.

Young Benjie (Evan Bird) is a child star, fresh out of rehab. Whether launching a foul-mouthed tirade at his manager, playing Russian roulette with household pets or cracking bad-taste jokes about Mother Teresa, his level of awfulness makes Justin Bieber look pleasant and well adjusted. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and we soon realize where Benjie gets it from: family patriarch “Dr” Stafford Weiss (John Cusack) is a quack to the glitterati, peddling a bizarre mix of massage, new-age mumbo-jumbo and psychotherapy to A-list screw-ups.

Stafford’s main patient is fading star Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore).

Being a woman on the wrong side of 40 in a deeply superficial ageist and sexist industry is the least of her problems, as she wrestles with her dysfunctional childhood. A mutual friend brings her into contact with Agatha (Mia Wasikowska), an out-of-towner burns victim in LA for unclear reasons.

She’s driven around the city by limo

chauffeur and wannabe actor Jerome (Robert Pattinson), who in most films would be mocked as a loser but is probably the most together of Cronenberg’s parade of freaks. The various characters’ arcs gradually become more enmeshed as the plot – which jumps between biting satire, supernatural horror and family psychodrama – progresses.

Cronenberg is savage in his dissection of his shallow industry, and it is this element of the film that has the strongest impact. A scene of flabbergasting Schadenfreude in which Havana celebrates the misfortune of a rival actress must be one of the most scathing Hollywood takedowns ever shot. The character of Benjie is also a monstrous master-class in child stars gone bad, tapping into a line of deadeyed rich kids from Macaulay Culkin to Bieber via Britney Spears.

The tonal shifts from comedy to shocking violence via the paranormal give the film some unevenness, and at times stretch character plausibility to breaking point. This is a shame, as much of the Hollywood narcissism, fakery and odiousness is all too believable. Every actor who has previously worked with Cronenberg must have watched this movie with fear in their hearts, asking themselves, “Is that me?”

But regardless of the uneasy tonal shifts, this is a striking picture, deeply mordant and darkly memorable. Of an excellent cast, Moore in particular is brilliant, while Bird is horribly convincing as the LA super-brat. Oscar Wilde wrote, “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”

Cronenberg’s Maps to the Stars leads straight to the gutter. debbie.stowe@business-review.ro

Photo: Ager Film

Moore money, Moore problems: Julianne Moore as washed up actress Havana

Three new local movie releases continue filmmakers’ investigation of the communist period.

Poarta Alba / White Gate, directed

by Nicolae Margineanu, is about the concentration camp at Poarta Alba and the construction of the Danube-Black Sea canal. The plot follows three students (Cristian Bota, Sergiu Bucur and Madalina Craiu) caught while trying to cross the Danube, two of whom are sent to the notorious camp. The movie was released in Romania on October 17.

Short film Calea Dunarii / Way of the Danube, directed by Sabin Dorohoi, tells the tale of a young boy who lives in a small Romanian village by the Danube.

The boy’s connection with the river drives him to attempt a watery journey to connect with his parents, who are working abroad in Vienna. It echoes the experience of thousands of children whose parents have left the country to try and give their kids a better life. The movie is available on YouTube.

Director Tudor Giurgiu will soon bring De ce eu? / Why me? to the big screen. The movie is the true story of a

Poarta Alba / White Gate

Romanian prosecutor, Cristian Panait (Emilian Oprea), who investigates a bribery case involving another prosecutor and unearths major corruption in the political system. Giurgiu has created a buzz by releasing the work in progress film in Bucharest, Cluj and Timisoara.

No release date has been made public so far. The message of the film – “Those who try to fight a suffocating system from the inside inevitably end up by being devoured, isolated and torn into pieces” – is timely given the recent presidential elections. oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

44 THEATER

Odeon Theater launches English subtitling service Bucharest’s Odeon Theater has introduced an on-request English subtitling service, opening up several of its rotating performances to non-Romanian speakers for the first time. staged across the Balkans and Eastern Europe, as well as in Germany.

∫ DEBBIE STOWE The service is currently available for five plays, as follows: l Drawing on the “mechanicals’

scene” in William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Pyramus & Thisbe 4 You, directed by Alexandru Dabija, parodies trends in contemporary Romanian theater. l Another local production, Ion Sapdaru’s Natura moarta cu nepot obez (Still Life with Fatty Nephew), directed by Eugen Fat, is a tragicomedy about an obese man living with three aunts. To read our review of the play, see the BR website. l Bertolt Brecht’s 1941 satire Ascensiunea lui Arturo Ui poate fi oprită (The Resistible Rise Of Arturo Ui) tells the story of a fictional Chicago mobster from the 1930s, based on

Play room: the Odeon Theater stages a rotating selection of production

Hitler. l Staged in the theater’s Studio Hall,

Blifat (Tlicked), written by Gabriel Pintilei and directed by Alexandru Mihail, is a slice-of-life comedy that centers on a typical Romanian family.

l Also in the Studio Hall, Gianina

Carbunariu’s Tipografic Majuscul (Typographic Capital Letters) was part of the project Parallel Lives – the 20th Century through the Eyes of Secret Police, and has been

Odeon Theater officials told BR, “The idea came about because these performances have featured in international festivals around the world, so we created subtitles for them. We had feedback from English speakers who were very happy with this service and we have demands for subtitles all the time.”

Theatergoers who would like English subtitles should put in their request two days in advance of the performance in question, either in person at the theater box office, by email to odeon.art@teatrul-odeon.ro or by calling 021 313 6874. Because the subtitles are displayed above the stage, it is advisable to avoid the front few rows of the stalls. debbie.stowe@business-review.ro

www.business-review.ro Business Review | November, 2014

CALENDAR 45

What’s next ∫ OANA VASILIU

Goethe play, he wrote the work with librettists Jules Barbier and Michel Carré. Set in Germany in the 16th century, the opera tells the story of the old scientist Faust, who, following a pact with the devil signed in blood, recovers his youth and beauty in exchange for his soul. The performance is in French with Romanian subtitles.

Gaudeamus fair Until November 23, Romexpo

musical compositions and will showcase iconic local pieces.

Sandra December 2, Sala Palatului

Cristian Macelariu and Gabriel Croitoru concert November 28, Radio Hall

December will also bring an upbeat note to the musical calendar, when Dutch group BZN rock Sala Palatului.

Band Zonder Naam, which means “band without a name” in Dutch, began playing in the 60s, with songs such as Blue Eyes, Just An Illusion and We All Will Dance making them a big name in the international charts.

Tickets cost from RON 100 to RON 500, and are available in the Eventim network.

Tosca December 6-7, Bucharest National Opera Photo: Silviu Pal

Composer, arranger, pianist and conductor Richard Oschanitzky was one of the best known Romanian jazz musicians of his day. The Romanian Radio Hall is marking what would have been his 75th birthday, with a concert at which two radio ensembles – the Romanian Radio National Orchestra and Radio Big Band – will be conducted by the musician’s brother, Peter Oschanitzky. The evening’s program will feature a composition by Richard Oschanitzky himself, alongside a Bernstein piece and the famous An American in Paris by Gershwin.

Tickets cost from RON 3 to RON 30.

Faust November 23, Bucharest National Opera

Photo: ONB

The myth of Faust has had numerous artistic retellings over the centuries, including, notably, Charles Gounod’s opera. Inspired by the well-known

Photo: ONB

Richard Oschanitzky anniversary concert November 21, Radio Hall

Photo: Sala Radio

Around 750 editorial events are scheduled to take place at the latest edition of the Gaudeamus book fair, expected to accommodate over 300 exhibitors.

The focus country at this year’s fair is the Russian Federation, which is expected to come with 17 guests – writers, literary critics, editors, journalists and musicians. Access to the fair is ticketbased.

A day ticket costs RON 5 while subscriptions are RON 10.

Two globally renowned Romanian musicians join forces to bring Silvestri, Mozart and Mendelssohn to their audience. Conductor Cristian Macelaru left Romania at the age of 17 to study music in the USA and his career is now soaring. He is currently an associate conductor at the Philadelphia Philharmonic. Violinist Gabriel Croitoru, a soloist of the Romanian Radio Orchestras and Choirs, in 2008 won the right to play the Guarneri violin that previously belonged to George Enescu.

Tickets cost from RON 3 to RON 30.

CinePOLSKA Festival November 28 – December 7, Cinema Elvira Popescu The tenth edition of the Polish Film Festival is marking 25 years since the fall of communism through six movies on different forms of liberty. The films are subtitled in Romanian and Russian.

Tickets cost from RON 5 to RON 15.

Triptych – symphony, opera, ballet November 30, Bucharest National Opera To mark December 1, Romania’s National Day, lovers of dance and music will head to the Bucharest National Opera House for a performance that brings together some of the top symphonic, opera and ballet compositions in Romanian culture. The program will include several long-neglected

The German pop singer, who enjoyed a string of European hit singles in the 1980s and early 1990s, most notably (I'll Never Be) Maria Magdalena (1985), In the Heat of the Night (1985), Everlasting Love (1987), Secret Land (1988), Hiroshima (1990) and Don't Be Aggressive (1992) brings her band to the Bucharest stage for a 90-minute live show.

Tickets cost from RON 100 to RON 500, and are available in the Eventim network.

Piano senses – Sergiu Tuhutiu December 3, Radio Hall Winner of the Debut to Master Soloist Piano Competition 2013 in Saint Petersburg, Sergiu Tuhutiu is considered a forerunner in the young generation of pianists. Tuhutiu studied in Romania and enriched his training abroad, earning an MA in Stuttgart and an Artist Diploma from the Royal College of Music in London. He has performed in the UK, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Russia, Brazil and Canada as well as Romania.

Tickets cost from RON 2 to RON 20.

When it premiered in 1900, at Rome’s Teatro Constanzi, many critics and composers denounced Tosca as shocking and disgusting. The audience, however, loved it. Puccini’s unique music, the well-rounded characters, the perfect connection between the stage action and historical reality, the impressive scenography by Adolfo Hohenstein, based on solid historical documentation and the incredible voice of Haricleea Darclée made the opera an overwhelming success. From then on it has been one of the most performed and beloved operas in the world.

Tickets cost from RON 10 to RON 150.

Indila December 7, Sala Palatului

BZN December 4, Sala Palatului The French star is performing in Romania for the second time, and owing to high ticket sales the artist will give two concerts in the same day, at 16.00 and 19.00, at which Derniere Danse is likely to be the big hit. Delia Matache offers the warm-up act.

Tickets cost from RON 120 to RON 320. oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

www.business-review.eu Business Review | November, 2014

46 ADVERTORIAL

Benefits for the managers and entrepreneurs elite, through MasterCard Elite Biz loyalty programme

Do you own a MasterCard Business or Corporate debit or credit card or are you considering getting one? It now comes with a lot of benefits, for you and your business.

Imagine that every place you go, whether you have lunch with a business partner, book your business trip or rush into the flower shop to buy the nicest bouquet for your business partners′ anniversary, your MasterCard Business or Corporate card offers you discounts up to 20%, gifts and free services.

In your daily schedule, full of challenges and opportunities, efficiency is the key word. Efficiency on all levels is exactly what we

thought of when we created MasterCard Elite Biz programme, with preferential offers smartly tailored for you. We thought of all the places you go to and the services you need for your business development and we gathered no less than 60 merchant partners in our programme, from the main cities around the country. An overall of 120 locations that offer you a preferential treatment under the MasterCard Elite Biz brand. ”On a business trip, health has to be our first concern, so that we can focus on our business objectives. The Voyage travel insurance from Allianz-Tiriac is the proper solution for anyone who wants to be safe from this point of view when travelling abroad. Besides that,

MasterCard Business or Corporate card holders now pay 20% less when buying this sort of policy”, explained Marcela Andănuț, Alternative Channel Distribution Manager within Allianz-Țiriac, partner in the MasterCard Elite Biz programme. ”Our strategy is to continuously develop flexible products for our customers and innovative solutions meant to get us closer to them. This is a strong motivation for our partnership with the Elite Biz programme”, continued Marcela Andănuț.

even of the decorations that will make your office look nicer.

If you take a look into the programme′s brochure, you will discover that we have also thought of your personal development projects, of the little presents you can surprise your colleagues or partners with and

All the MasterCard Elite Biz offers are available on the MasterCard website: www.mastercard.ro/biz and valid, in the current form, until the end of the year. We are waiting for you to discover them.

MasterCard Elite Biz covers a very diverse range of products and services useful to you on a daily basis: travel insurances, transfer services and premium cabs in Bucharest, car wash and car service, corporate gifts, translation and interpretation services, online bookshops, tourism agencies, but also restaurants and cafes, for successful business meetings.